Worship
by Cloud Clavell
Summary: When Todd needs something retrieved, he pairs up the Atlantis team with his favourite worshipper. Featuring Ancient mazes, treasure hunts and Ronon Dex. Lots and lots of Ronon Dex. Booyah!
1. Contact

**Everyone seems to take it in stride that there are people – besides brain-washed Satedans – twisted enough to worship the Wraith. This is an OC-oriented piece looking at where these people came from and whether they're irredeemable. Also has a maze, some traps and lots of Ronon Dex. This is set after "The Queen" when Todd is in control of the Wraith alliance.**

_**Kish'Kirin **_**is Kisri's name for Todd.**

**CONTACT**

Kisri walked down the corridor, not looking at the Wraith soldiers flanking her. _Kish'Kirin_'s second-in-command had just sent word that the hangar bay was sealed once more, and she had been sent to greet the delegation from Atlantis.

The Ancient ship looked bulky and ungainly among the darts. She stood there, weight on one foot, fixing her best smile in place. The door lowered, revealing four people.

"Welcome," she greeted them, forcing her hands to stay limp by her side. The Wraith soldiers stood behind her passively, weapons lowered.

The distaste on all of the humans' faces was immediately apparent, and didn't surprise her. Wraith worshippers were the lowest of the low to humans. She didn't care. Humans were the lowest of the low to Wraith worshippers.

"Well, this is a nicer reception than we've gotten the last few times," the leader said, stepping forwards. Kisri had heard _Kish'Kirin_ discuss this man: his bravery, stubbornness and downright refusal to die were creating him a cult of his own in the Pegasus Galaxy. With an experienced eye she took his measure: flexible, honourable, ruthless if necessary, and by no means a fool.

"Colonel Sheppard," she said, not turning it into a question.

"Hi. This is Teyla, Ronon and Doctor Rodney McKay." He indicated in turn a pretty woman with steel in her eyes, a huge bear of a man with hatred radiating from his pores and a nervous, soft-looking man with darting eyes and fidgeting hands.

"I'm Kisri. I've heard much about all of you." She sent Dr McKay a soft, beguiling smile. He blinked back, confused.

"So where's Todd?" Sheppard interrupted, looking none too pleased.

"If you mean the Commander, I'm here to take you to him." Kisri gestured for Colonel Sheppard to walk beside her. As they made their way through the ship, she repeated thoughtfully, "Todd." The name was hard for her to pronounce: her native tongue had been thick with soft sh- and s- sounds and sharp k- consonants. "Todd. That's your name for the Commander?"

"Sure is. Unless you know his real name?" Sheppard eyed her curiously.

"Nobody knows his real name. I call him _Kish'Kirin._" Kisri turned up her smile slightly. "It means 'averse to the sun.'" It actually meant something far ruder, but with Kisri the only one left to speak her tongue, nobody was around to call her a liar.

"Yeah, that's kind of what 'Todd' means too."

_Kish'Kirin _was waiting for her in the meeting room. They shed the Wraith soldiers at the door, and Kisri led the Atlantis team into the room. "I've brought them, _Kish'Kirin._"

"Well done, Kisri. Greetings, Sheppard." _Kish'Kirin'_s eyes gave away nothing. "I trust you are well?"

* * *

><p>John Sheppard didn't trust Todd as far as he could throw him, and he would dearly like to see how far that actually was. The fact that Todd had acquired a worshipper along the way did nothing to improve his mood, so his tone was understandably bordering on 'pissed off' when he responded.<p>

"I'm not bad," he told Todd. "How's being the boss suiting you?"

"I find being the one in power quite pleasing," he replied, sounding slightly smug. "It is a pleasant change to be able to implement effective strategies."

"That must be nice." The sarcasm in Sheppard's tone could have melted copper. "So why'd you call us, Todd? What do you want this time?"

"Straight to the point, I see." Todd didn't sound offended. Kisri's smile grew wider for a heartbeat. "Are you aware of this substance?" He nodded at Kisri, and she placed a rock on the table.

Sheppard stared at it. It was black, with small silver specks scattered over the surface. "Well, I have seen rocks before, you know, they're not exactly a rare species."

Rodney, his inclination to be a smart-ass tempered by scientific curiousity, had pulled a tablet out of his jacket and was scanning the stone. "This is emitting some kind of radiation, isn't it?"

"The kill-us kind of radiation?" Sheppard enquired, glaring at Todd suspiciously.

"The useless kind," Rodney replied dismissively.

"You sound very sure of that," Todd interrupted curiously.

"I found a sample of the same kind of thing in an Ancient lab during our first year here. It was weaker than this, but not by much. All the Ancients' findings and reports said the same thing: it's radiation that has no use. Can't be used for power, can't harm anyone… worst this rock will give you is sunburn after a few centuries."

"They were not correct," Todd said. "It has no use in its untreated form, but when subjected to a chemical catalyst, it can be transformed into a weapon."

Ronon's eyes lit up. They were speaking his language. "What kind of weapon?"

"A weapon against the Wraith. Exposed to this activated substance, we would slowly be poisoned, our organs would fail, our skin... it is not a pleasant sight."

"Why the hell are you carrying this thing around then?" Sheppard nudged the rock.

"It is not active," Todd told them. "But recently word has reached me of a planet where it is."

"Ok. So you want us to, what, go after the magic rock for you?" Sheppard couldn't believe his ears. Had Todd really just admitted that there was such a thing as a Wraith-killing _rock?_

"That is not all I have heard," Todd continued. "Another Hive has discovered the location as well. They are attempting to retrieve it also."

"Will retrieving it not kill them?" Teyla asked, confused.

"The Wraith will send human servants to retrieve a sample." Todd waited, as if expecting a response.

"Well, you appear to have a human now as well, so best of luck to you." Sheppard stood.

"The mineral is concealed at the heart of an Ancient maze," Todd interrupted. "Above it stands a city. If you allow the rival Hive to arrive at that planet, they will retrieve a sample of the mineral and then destroy the city and all of its inhabitants, to ensure that the mineral is never removed. Nor can the mineral veins be entirely removed without doing the same."

Sheppard froze, then sat back down slowly. So that's why he had been so casual about revealing such a huge weakness.

"I will agree to leave the humans unharmed," Todd rumbled. "In return, you will enter the maze, and neutralise the rocks."


	2. The Arrival

**THE ARRIVAL**

"You will enter the maze, make your way to the heart of it, and utilise a chemical compound that neutralises the mineral. I will then send a message to the other Hive, explaining the situation and advising that they rethink the wisdom of their intentions."

"That's your plan?" Rodney demanded, scandalised at the stupidity. "I mean, even if we get to the centre of the maze and use this chemical, the other Hive won't just take us at our word."

"It won't be _your_ word they're taking," Todd reminded him. "They will think twice before crossing me, I assure you of that."

"It's good to be king," Sheppard said grimly. "But I gotta wonder, Todd. You don't want the rock as well?"

Todd very nearly shrugged. "I am not a fool, Sheppard. I cannot reach this mineral without your assistance, and you would never consent to letting me have such a weapon. I would rather nobody possess it."

"Fair point."

"In case you are getting any ideas, let me assure you, the schematics of the weapon that could be formed are of a unique design that exists only in the databases of certain Wraith ships. Do not think to take a sample of the mineral for yourself. It would be useless to you."

"You read my mind," Sheppard said, smiling slightly. "I think we're getting to know each other a little too well, Todd."

"We should make haste," Teyla said, leaning forwards. "How close to the planet is the rival Hive?"

"It will be there in three days."

"So we gotta be there in one," Sheppard glanced around at his team. They nodded at him. "Anything else you want to share with us, Todd?"

"Kisri will accompany you on this mission. I am sending her also."

"No, you're not." Sheppard's tone didn't invite argument.

"You do not trust me, and I do not trust you. I am sending Kisri. I believe the term is insurance." Todd seemed pretty damned stubborn on this point as well.

"I'm not going anywhere with a Worshipper," Ronon growled, leaning forwards threateningly.

Kisri raised her head. "I have a map of the maze. Does that change anything?"

"No, I'm pretty sure you're still a traitor to the human race," Sheppard said. "Give us the map and we'll get the job done."

"The map stays with me," Kisri said.

"Then we have a problem."

"That is my condition, Sheppard," Todd hissed. "If you do not consent, I will be forced to destroy the city before the other Hive arrives. I imagine that will affect the human population of that planet _adversely._"

Sheppard growled to himself. Todd had them there.

"I know the way through the maze," Kisri said into the silence, "But I don't have the Ancient gene. That's what's needed to make it through alive. I'm not going to try anything. Not when I'm outnumbered four to one."

Sheppard glared at her. Ronon leaned over and said into his ear, "This is a bad idea."

"We don't seem to have a lot of options," Sheppard replied grimly. "Fine. She can come, but I reserve the right to kill her if I even _think _she's about to double-cross us."

"You wouldn't be the first to _try_," Kisri told him sharply, pride clearly stung.

"I think we can all agree that the reason my team and I are here is because we succeed where others don't," Sheppard reminded her.

Kisri smiled at him. "That might be the _reason_, but the _result_ is we're allies now. Remember?"

"Oh boy," Rodney sighed audibly. "This is going to be a very long mission."

* * *

><p>"I think," Kisri said, hanging onto her harness for grim life, "That you are enjoying this too much, Colonel." With her accent, his rank became 'Kirnell'.<p>

"I'm just flying us down to the planet," Sheppard said cheerfully, swooping suddenly and banking hard. He was rewarded with a murderous – if slightly nauseous – glare and silence from his unwanted passenger.

"You fly on Wraith ships, do you not feel ill then?" Teyla asked curiously. Kisri shook her head grimly, her knuckles turning white as a sudden gust of turbulence made the Jumper lurch.

"That was a big one," McKay muttered, pulling up a screen. "Wind speed picks up the closer we get to the surface of the planet." As if to underline his words, they tipped frighteningly and the entire machine shuddered.

"Todd neglected to mention that," Sheppard muttered, fighting for control as the Jumper suddenly developed a mind of its own and decided to rebel.

"I tried to warn you," Kisri said pointedly, yelling over the noise of protesting metal. "You told me you knew what you were doing."

John did have a vague memory of something like that occurring. "I _do_ know what I'm doing," he growled at her. "I can fly anything you point me at. We're about to land, see? Smooth and easy."

The gods clearly heard him, Kisri reflected grimly. The instant he finished his sentence, a sudden gust seized them like the hand of a giant child and threw them into the ground. The Jumper landed – hard – skidded for several metres and lay there in a state of stillness, punctuated by the howling wind outside.

Kisri blinked and fumbled for the release to her seatbelt. Her fingers found it and the straps came loose, sending her sliding across the tilted floor to fetch up against Ronon Dex's chest. She hadn't realised the machine was tilted at an almost forty-five degree angle to the right.

"_Karo_," she apologised, pushing back.

"What did you call me?" he demanded, reaching for his weapon.

"It is an apology, Ronon," Teyla chided him. She had been sitting next to the big man; now she crouched, one foot on the floor, her back against the wall to maintain her balance. "Colonel Sheppard? Rodney? Are you well?"

"I'm fine," Sheppard called.

"I hit my head on the console!" Doctor McKay called.

"Are you injured?" Teyla had the patient tone of a mother dealing with a fractious child.

"It really hurts! I could have a concussion."

"He's fine too." Sheppard climbed over his seat and pulled himself into the rear compartment.  
>"Are the winds always this strong on this planet, Kisri?"<p>

"Yes," she said, still annoyed at him. "Which is why I tried to warn you when we entered the atmosphere."

"Next time try harder," he snapped back. "How far are we to the maze?"

"Show me your maps." He hesitated, and her voice became sharper. "We are working together, Colonel, do you recall?"

Sheppard nodded grudgingly at Rodney, who tapped a few buttons on the console. "At least the Jumper doesn't seem damaged," McKay said encouragingly to the rest of his team.

"Oh good," Kisri said to the doctor, squeezing past Sheppard to see the screen. "We aren't far from the caves at all."

"Define not far," Sheppard said.

Kisri shrugged. "An hour's walk?"

There was silence as they listened to the wind moan outside.

"Let's get some rest. We'll tackle it in the morning."

Kisri raised an eyebrow at the Colonel. "The suns of this planet don't rise for another fifty hours."

Sheppard glared at her. "We'll be walking in that wind in the _dark_?"

Kisri shrugged again. "I did try to warn you."


	3. The Dark of the Moon

**The Dark of the Moon**

The ground was amazingly flat, and the moonlight was amazingly strong. These two factors combined to send their five shadows stretching over the landscape like giants.

They were strung out in a line, Ronon taking point, Teyla at the end, John, Kisri and Rodney in the middle. John raised his head and chanced a look back. The three behind him had their heads bowed against the wind, eyes squinted to keep dust from blinding them. He slowed, waiting for Kisri to reach him, then yelled in her ear, "HOW MUCH FURTHER?"

"BENEATH THOSE ROCKS," she called back, pointing to a cluster of shapes ahead of them. They didn't look far, but with land this flat, Sheppard knew distances were deceptive.

Ronon had overheard them – that man's hearing was eerie sometimes – and altered his course accordingly. Five minutes later, the group reached the rocks. There was a dark gap between two of them that Kisri slid through easily. Teyla followed quickly, anxious not to let the worshipper out of her sight. The larger men outside exchanged glances, sighed and with much wriggling and grunting forced their way into the narrow cleft.

Within the rocks was a short tunnel leading to a surprisingly large cavern. Rodney lit a flare, illuminating columns and several doorways leading off the room.

"Alright," Sheppard croaked. "Five minutes, then we'll keep moving." He pulled his water-bottle out and took a mouthful to wash away the dust.

"This is the first chamber," Kisri said, her voice echoing. "The maze goes deep into the earth."

"I thought you said it was under a city," Ronon said, eyeing her suspiciously.

Kisri nodded. "The people of this planet live underground. The tunnels of the maze are below the ones they themselves constructed. The people do not come out at night if they can avoid it."

"We should get moving," John said, standing and switching on the torch attached to the barrel of his gun. "Kisri, which way?"

Kisri pushed herself up to her feet and moved to the centre of the room. "Shine your light on the doors."

Rodney did so. The beam didn't penetrate far into the darkness. Kisri clicked her tongue. "No, _above_ the doors. Up. Up!"

John rolled his eyes, pulled out his spare torch and passed it to Kisri. "Here. You get a light of your very own."

"_Shiska,"_ she said, examining it.

"Thank you," Teyla interpreted for Sheppard.

Kisri shot her a sharp look. "You speak my language?"

"My people traded with others who did when I was young. I know some phrases, not many. They did not wear red, though." Teyla nodded at Kisri's scarlet clothing.

"This is all fascinating, but we really do need to get going," Sheppard said, slightly impatient. "Kisri?"

Kisri gave Teyla a final hard-eyed look, and turned the torch's light on the symbols carved above the lintel of each door. "That's Ancient, isn't it?" Rodney asked.

Kisri nodded and turned to the second doorway from the left. "This way."

"I'll take point," John said, grabbing her shoulder to stop her.

"There are traps in this maze," she objected, batting his hand away.

"You don't have the Ancient gene, remember?"

Kisri muttered something. "Fine. I will follow."

John made eye contact with Ronon above the girl's head. Ronon nodded curtly. He and Sheppard had worked together enough for the big man to pick up on the Colonel's unspoken message: _Watch her closely._

The tunnel was tall and narrow, single-file only. The group walked in silence for several minutes. Kisri was examining her new torch with interest, and Ronon was examining Kisri.

As Teyla had noticed, Kisri's clothing was red: red coat, scarf, leggings, shirt, even red leather boots. Ronon wasn't the type to pay attention to women's clothing, but he thought that Kisri had been wearing red the first time they had met as well. The torch light was casting a rosy glow across her skin.

"There are air-vents in this maze, I bet," Rodney called from behind him.

"What makes you say that?" Sheppard didn't really sound like he cared.

"Well, haven't you noticed how fresh the air is down here? There's got to be some form of circulation."

"I suppose the Ancients wouldn't have wanted to suffocate," Kisri agreed.

"Why did the Ancients build this anyway?" Ronon asked, irritated at her cheerful tone.

Kisri glanced back at him and shrugged. "You live in their city, you tell me."

"You're the one who found a map," Ronon snarled.

"Your friends are the ones with the Ancient gene."

"Don't make me come back there, you two," Sheppard ordered, then suddenly raised a fist. Kisri bumped into his back, and he turned around to glare at her. "When I do that, it means stop."

"Why are we stopping?" Teyla called.

"There's a room here."

"So…" Rodney sounded confused. "Why are we stopping?"

"There's a room here, Rodney. A nice, big, round, inviting room."

"Oh, right. Trap?"

"Could be." Sheppard shone his torch up and down the walls of the tunnel. "There are symbols here."

"Well, I can't really read them, can I?" Rodney asked peevishly, staring at Ronon's back. "Chewie here is kind of blocking my line of sight."

"Let me see." Kisri moved to look at the symbols. "I can't read these."

"Well that was helpful," Sheppard said sarcastically.

She sniffed at him. "I was going to say, though, that treasure hunters have made it across the floor of this chamber."

"And what makes you say that?" Sheppard demanded.

"She's right," Ronon said suddenly. "Look at the floor."

Sheppard turned and shone his torch on the ground of the chamber. In the thick dust, there were the faintest shapes of footprints.

"I only see them going one way," he said doubtfully.

"We can't stay here all night," Kisri said impatiently.

"Alright, you can go first then." Sheppard pressed himself to the wall of the tunnel for her to get past. She stared at him for a moment, then tossed her head.

"Fine."

Holding her torch, she stepped cautiously out onto the floor. Nothing happened. Ronon followed her out, eyes darting around the room. Again, nothing.

"I guess we're safe," Sheppard said to McKay.

"Guess so." McKay glanced at him. "You wanna go next?"

"I will go next," Teyla said firmly. Though she'd never say it, clearly she was sick of being stuck at the end of the convoy.

"Made it alive," Kisri called from across the room.

"Damn," Sheppard said to himself, making his way after his team.

Ronon stepped up next to Kisri to look closely at the wall. "Hey, Sheppard, there's a button." He gestured at a round crystal set at eye-level. Eye-level for normal people, that is; for him it was rib-cage-level.

"Rodney, what do you got?"

Rodney was scanning it already. "Looks like it's programmed to open to a certain type of DNA. Like a genetic fingerprint."

"Who's DNA?"

Rodney shrugged at Ronon. "I guess the Ancients'."

Sheppard turned to Kisri. "You knew this was here."

She didn't bother to deny it. "Of course. People have found this maze before. They can't make it past these chambers, so they give up and go home. Some of them, anyway. Others die."

"Die? Die how?" Rodney asked, shocked.

"I'm not waiting around to find out. This thing reacts to Ancient DNA?" Sheppard waited for McKay to drag his horrified gaze from Kisri and nod. "So I should press it and it should open up?"

"Well, I mean, I guess."

"Rodney…"

"Yes, it should."

"Here goes nothing." Sheppard pulled off his glove, and pressed his palm to the button. It glowed red, then blue, and the door began to open.

At the same time, the floor began to tilt.

The floor was composed of wide, metre-square tiles. The instant John had touched the button, the tiles had all begun to turn sideways. At the same time, the wall began to raise ponderously.

"Go!" John yelled frantically, shoving Rodney towards the gap. The two women had already rolled through. Rodney dropped to his hands and knees and scrambled after them. John wanted to turn to Ronon, didn't have time, the floor was shifting, the gap was widening –

With a huge effort, he threw himself forwards, landing on the floor beyond the doorway, scraping his back against the bottom of the wall. There was a thud behind him, and Teyla rushed forwards. John turned; the woman was hanging half-out of the doorway, clutching Ronon's wrists.

"John," she grunted. "Help me!"

John knelt next to her and grabbed the back of Ronon's coat. With a tremendous grunt of effort, he and Teyla _heaved_, raising their teammate up a few more centimetres. The instant his hands were level with the edge, Ronon helped them lift him up and pull him onto the safety of the corridor floor.

"You need to lay off the steak, buddy," John gasped.

"You need to work on your upper-body strength," Ronon retorted.

Teyla, who had collapsed back against the wall, looked out at the rom they had just been in. "John… look."

They all looked out at the room. The floor tiles were hanging vertically like sheets from a line. Suddenly there was the rumble of ancient machinery, and the tiles began to rotate again, swinging back into place to form a dusty, seamless floor. Teyla scooted back hastily as the wall slid closed once more.

"I don't understand," Rodney said finally. "I mean, that thing was designed to detect Ancient genes, and you and I have that gene, Sheppard."

"That doesn't make you Ancients," Ronon pointed out. "You're still basically human."

"You think it detected both types of DNA? Huh." Rodney sounded put out at not realising it himself.

"You mean you can't neutralise any more traps?" Kisri sounded put out at reality in general.

"We can get through the traps," Sheppard told her.

"By setting them off! We are in the middle of an underground maze!" Kisri was tempted to throw her torch at him. "How are we to get out?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Sheppard rose.

Kisri rose with him. "You'll _collapse_ that bridge when you come to it, you mean."

It was a good line. For once, Sheppard was stumped to top it.

**Ok, I know I didn't mention Kisri wearing red before. It is kind of important, but I couldn't think of a way to work it in without sounding weird. I'll describe her physical features later on in the story. Anyone who has any good combinations in mind, go ahead and suggest them. If I use them, I'll be sure to give you credit.**

**Also, Teyla traded with people who spoke a different language and Ronon didn't because Ronon was too busy being a bad-ass during his formative years. That is my explanation for everything about his character: he is a bad-ass.**


	4. Species

**SPECIES**

The new tunnel was wide enough for them to break with single file and walk in pairs. John and Kisri took point, while Ronon graciously allowed Teyla to walk in the middle with McKay, taking up the rear guard himself.

"Do you even know where we're going?" John asked Kisri scathingly, as they finally came to two doors and she paused.

She ignored him magnificently, running her torch over the symbols carved into the doorways. "It's the one to the left," she announced. Before she could step forwards, John stopped her.

"I think," he said softly, "That it might not be a bad idea to have a better look before we keep plunging headfirst into traps."

Kisri pursed her lips, but kept silent.

"It doesn't look like there're any crystals around," Ronon announced.

"Well, Captain Obvious has spoken." McKay was only that sarcastic when he was well and truly unnerved. "There are no crystals, but that doesn't mean the Ancients didn't do _something."_ He moved forwards cautiously, looking like a frightened rabbit.

"Well?" John prodded.

McKay looked at him, slightly shamefaced. "I can't tell. Not without actually entering the passageway."

"I believe I may have a better idea." Teyla picked up a chunk of rock and threw it down the middle of the left-hand corridor. It bounced off the floor, echoing. Nothing happened.

"It's harmless." Kisri started forwards again, and John stopped her… again.

"Let me try." John pulled a spare radio out of his tactical vest and tossed it gently after Teyla's rock. The instant it hit the floor, a bolt of electricity shot from the wall and reduced it to a pile of smoking ashes.

"'It's harmless'," McKay squeaked. "Right."

* * *

><p>It took them some time, but through trial and error, they soon learned that only electrical items were affected. Their guns, armour, clothing and – in Ronon's case – knives remained unaffected.<p>

"It exists to destroy machinery," Teyla realised. "Electrical devices."

"What is this damn maze for?" John demanded. "It opens for the Ancients, but then it trashes their machines!"

"On Sateda, we had a tradition," Ronon rumbled from the darkness. "You had to enter the woods for a while and live there. You could only take one set of clothing and a single knife. You had to stay there until the elders came for you."

"You think this maze is a rite of passage?" Teyla asked, doubtful.

"It's possible," McKay agreed with Ronon. "I mean, the Satedans had to get the idea from somewhere, right?"

"Why would the Ancients abandon it?" Kisri wondered.

"Maybe because they were in the middle of a war with your buddies the Wraith." John glared at her. "I gotta wonder, how does it feel to be on the winning side when you know they only won by cheating?"

"It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. I just wish they had done it before the Ancients built this _shissirin _maze." Kisri tilted her head and looked at the passageway. "You want me to go first again?"

With a snort of disgust, John stepped forwards. "_I'll_ go first."

* * *

><p>The group had entirely shed their machines: torches, radios, and Rodney's precious tablet lay abandoned in the middle of the tunnel behind them. It seemed to be enough: no lightning bolts appeared to fry them as they walked.<p>

"Colonel," Kisri said after a few minutes, "I can't help but ask, won't you commanders wonder where you are?"

"We informed Mr Woolsey of what we were doing," Teyla said.

John snorted. "Yeah, he agreed with us that as amusing as it would be to see the Wraith taking each other out with rocks, this planet's inhabitants didn't deserve to be caught in the middle."

"Really? _Kish'Kirin_ thought you would make the decision on your own." Kisri sounded mildly surprised.

"That's not quite how it works on Earth."

"You aren't on Earth any more, Colonel. What is it like?"

"Oh no. No, we've had a worshipper try this trick before. I'm not telling you anything."

"I was just making conversation."

"Then don't."

"You'd rather walk in silence down a long dark tunnel?"

"Yes."

"Fine."

"You know," Rodney chimed in, "I, uh, don't know if you'd noticed, but the tunnel actually isn't that dark anymore."

Teyla held up her hand. She could see it outlined against the tunnel wall. "Rodney is right. The walls are _glowing._"

"Another Ancient trick?" Ronon asked warily.

McKay leaned over to look at the wall, scratched it and peered under his fingernail. "No. Bioluminescent fungi. It looks like some type of moss."

"Better hope it isn't poisonous," Sheppard said with a grin. Rodney wiped his hand quickly on his pants.

"It isn't moss," Kisri told them. "There's a worm that lives in the spaces between rocks on this planet. It makes cocoons when it is laying its eggs. These are traces of old cocoons."

"Ah, yeah, but is it poisonous?" Rodney asked anxiously.

"The cocoon isn't, but the eggs are. That's why the cocoons glow."

"It's on the floor too," Ronon muttered, crouching to look at the ground. Suddenly he hissed. "Sheppard!"

"What?"

"Look at this." He traced the outline of an indistinct shape on the ground. Sheppard knelt down next to him to have a look. "Tracks. Something else has been down here."

Sheppard squinted. It was difficult to make out shapes, but Ronon was right. There was definitely some type of footprint on the ground. "What made that?"

"Something with claws."

"You know, Kisri, I'm getting a little sick of you not telling us about things like this," Sheppard said, getting to his feet.

"I didn't know there were creatures living down here!" she protested. "I thought this maze was abandoned."

"Guess you can never keep out the wildlife. You know what these things could be?"

Kisri twisted her mouth, thinking. "This planet doesn't have many big animals. The largest is about this high." She held a hand up next to her hip. "The natives call them gogoms. They live underground, in burrows. The burrows aren't very deep, though, the ground is too hard to dig far. Oh…" Her eyes widened as she realised what must have happened.

Teyla finished her thought for her. "So if these gogoms found the maze, they would have seen it as a home that they would not have to create."

"_Great._ What do these things look like?"

"They have scales and claws. Four legs."

"These things nocturnal?" Sheppard asked. Kisri tipped her head. "Do they hunt at night or in the day?"

"Everything on this planet hunts at night."

"So they shouldn't be in the tunnels at the moment."

"Colonel, everything on this planet lives below the surface, which means everything that wants to eat them hunts below the surface also. If we're lucky, though, the gogoms will have killed anything that lived in these tunnels a long time ago."

"Then we definitely need to get out of here."

With the threat of scaly space lions to spur them on, the group made good time. The days seemed to have piled up, and without his watch, Sheppard couldn't tell how long they had been underground. He doubted that it could have been more than three hours, despite what his senses were telling him.

"There's another divide." Kisri stepped forwards to peer at the walls. "_Shissin_…"

"What is it?"

"We have gotten lost, somehow."

"You've gotta be kidding me! We've only had to make two decisions, and _you_ were the one who's been telling us where to go!" Sheppard was livid. Ronon was fingering the hilt of his sword longingly.

"Kisri, how can we be lost?" Teyla interjected, trying to calm the situation.

"There are symbols above each door. I memorised the order that would lead us to the centre of the maze. Neither of these doors have the right symbols above. Neither of these doors have _any_ symbols."

"Alright, let's spread out and have a look at the walls," Sheppard ordered. "Look for any carvings."

The team did as they were ordered, while he began running his hands over the doors. Beneath the traces of old cocoons, there was nothing.

"Nothing here," Ronon called out.

"Nada."

"I have found nothing also."

"Damn it!" John swore, slamming his fist against the stone between the two doorways.

A musical chime rang out, and he jumped back as the outline of both doors glowed a brilliant blue. With a rumble, they slid to the side, exposing two more passages. On the stone between them, a verse of words appeared as well, in the same lapis-lazuli light.

"Ancients," Ronon muttered, turning it into a curse.

"Rodney, can you read this?" Sheppard checked his shoulder, making sure the light wasn't attracting anything else that could be creeping up the tunnel behind them. His neck hair was beginning to prickle, but there was nothing there.

"Uh, yeah… this doesn't make sense, I mean…"

"Rodney!"

"Don't yell at me, I'm not the one who put a poem up!"

Sheppard couldn't have been more surprised if Elizabeth Weir had popped out of the rock mounted on a unicycle juggling flaming swords. "A _poem_?"

"Yeah, listen to this:

_I speak to say victory,_

_I speak to say peace._

_I warn you of war,_

_And I herald the feast._

_I come from the earth_

_Silent and cold,_

_But I live in the air, _

_And cry when I'm told._"

"What the–"

"That is not a poem," Teyla said suddenly, stopping John right before he could start ranting.

"It sounded like a poem to me," Ronon said.

"It is an Athosian riddle. One of the first every child is taught."

John was so sick of this entire maze, it wasn't even funny. "What do you mean, Teyla?"

"There is an Athosian riddle that sounds almost identical to this." Teyla looked at them all. "It is very old, and everybody knows the answer."

"Hang on, let me see if I can get it…"

"What's the answer?" Ronon asked, ignoring McKay.

"The answer is a bell."

"Right. A bell's made of metal, but you hang it up in the air," John realised.

"And it never speaks 'til it's '_tolled'_, get it?" McKay crowed.

"_Shissin!_" Kisri said suddenly. "The symbol for 'bell' in the language of this planet is identical to the symbol for 'left' in Ancient."

They exchanged glances, and as one, turned to look at the left tunnel. McKay was the one to voice the obvious. "Guess we go left."

**Wow, I'm really spoiling you guys with updates. For anyone who's read Brian Jacques, yes, I did totally borrow one of his riddles, but it was such a good one!**

**The competition to describe Kisri will still be going for a few more chapters. Please review!**


	5. 20 Million Miles to Earth

**Feel free to laugh, but I totally forgot that their plan revolved around setting off a chemical compound. So, let's pretend that for the last three chapters, Ronon's been carrying a small canister of gas, which got through the electrical tunnel by being a mechanical construct.**

**20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH**

"I think I hate this place."

Kisri was ready to strangle him if Doctor McKay didn't stop talking.

"I really do. I mean, it's dark, it's cold, we're walking on bug placenta–"

"Cocoons," she said sharply. "They're cocoons."

"Well yeah, but it's the same thing, really. I mean, why are we even down here? We have the Ancient gene, so we can get through the maze, but those other worshippers wouldn't be able to–"

"Someone's determined enough, they'll get to wherever they want to be," Ronon said. Kisri gritted her teeth. He kept moving to walk next to her without her realising he was there. For a man a head taller than her, he moved absolutely silently. She sped up, falling into place next to Teyla.

"I know, I know, it's just, we've been down here for days!"

"It's been about three hours, Rodney," Sheppard said.

"It feels like days."

Kisri was tempted to add, 'Only because you won't stop talking,' but caution made her hold her tongue. Their alliance was uneasy at best; _Kish'kirin_ had specifically warned her not to antagonise them until they reached the centre of the maze.

"I believe I see light, Colonel Sheppard." Teyla craned her head.

"More bugs?" Rodney asked glumly.

John stopped short. "Not… quite…"

They were standing on the edge of a huge crevasse. There was a thin ledge, to the left and to the right. In front of them, the rock descended into darkness. The other side of the cavern could be seen, but it was hundreds of metres away.

"Right. There's a cliff. Of course there's a cliff." Rodney sounded almost hysterical.

"Kisri, right or left?" John demanded, ignoring him.

Kisri stepped forwards and peered along the path. "There are tunnels on both sides. I can't see the markings from here."

"Alright," John said, coming to a decision. "Kisri, show me what we're looking for." Kisri grabbed his palm and sketched a symbol on it with her fingertip. John blinked, but took it in stride. "You go left. I'll go right. If you don't have the symbol on your side, it means it's on mine."

Kisri stepped out onto the ledge, as confident as a dancer. Sheppard, less blasé, edged his way along the ledge, pressing his back to the wall as much as he could.

The worshipper reached her destination first. "The symbol isn't here," she called.

"Guess that means I'm the lucky guy," John muttered through clenched teeth.

"Sheppard!" Ronon yelled suddenly, pulling out his gun. "Over there!"

John turned his head so quickly he feared for a moment he had lost his balance. On the opposite side of the cavern, he realised, was a cave identical to theirs. And on the ledge, there were a group of people, three men, one woman.

"The other Hive's worshippers," Kisri said, her voice surprisingly angry.

The other worshippers knew they were there, Ronon's shout had seen to that. They were waving and gesturing and pointing at the Atlantis team. Without warning, one man shouldered a large, twisted tube and fired.

A missile made of some dark metal launched out of the tube, trailing smoke and sparks as it sped across the cavern. The man missed his mark: the missile slammed into the wall above the ledge.

"MOVE!" Sheppard roared, flinging himself around the corner and into the relative safety of his tunnel as the cave rumbled and shook, sending rocks and boulders crashing down towards the ledge. Teyla followed him, but in the dust and darkness, Ronon, Rodney and Kisri went left.

* * *

><p>"<em>Insa<em>," Kisri coughed, pushing herself upright and slipping again as gravel rolled under her feet. Her arms were bruised from her graceless landing, and she could barely breathe. "Why did you yell at them?"

"I didn't know they were armed!" Ronon objected.

"Guys, where's Teyla and Sheppard?" Rodney interrupted. The tunnel was pitch-black, but it was clear by the level of sound that there were only three people in it.

"They must have made it to the other tunnel." Ronon felt around, trying to locate the wall. Kisri slapped his hand away as he grabbed the side of her head, and he growled in frustration. "McKay, where are you?"

"I'm over here."

"I can't see you!"

"He's _here_," Kisri said, grabbing Ronon's arm in one hand and McKay's in the other. "The tunnel goes this way, come on."

"We need to find Teyla and Sheppard," Ronon said, trying to turn.

"We can't go that way," Kisri insisted. "Those rocks will take too long to clear away. They were in the correct tunnel, they'll probably make it to the centre of the maze before we do." A thought struck her. "You still have the gas?"

"Yes."

"She's right, Ronon," McKay said, subdued. "We try and get back onto the ledge, we'll be sitting ducks for the idiot with the space bazooka."

"That _insa _fell," Kisri said in contempt. "He slipped and lost his footing when his weapon fired. He doesn't worry me, but his friends do. That's another reason I want to keep going."

"Aren't we lost now?" Rodney said suddenly. "I mean, you don't know the symbols anymore, do you?"

Kisri sighed. She hadn't thought of that. "It's a good thing you have the Ancient gene, isn't it?"

There was no better plan to be thought of. With a shrug, Ronon and Rodney followed her into the darkness.

* * *

><p>John rolled onto his side, coughing, and bumped face first into a woman's leg. "Nancy?" he murmured, dazed.<p>

"Colonel?" Teyla sounded equally amused, confused and pissed-off.

"Ah. That could have been awkward in another situation." John sat up and shook his head vigorously. "Teyla. What happened?"

"There was a rockslide. I believe the others have been trapped in the second tunnel. I attempted to return to the ledge, but we are blocked in."

"Great." John straightened and groaned as his spine cracked back into place. "I'm getting too old for this." He sighed. Teyla waited in silence. She knew the feel of Sheppard coming up with another brilliant plan. "We have to keep going. If we move, maybe we can meet up with them somewhere. I don't like this."

"Doctor McKay will get them through any Ancient traps, and Ronon will watch Kisri, I'm sure."

"I'm talking about those other worshippers. I don't like that they're in here with us at all. Call me crazy, Teyla," he added as they set off, bumping into one another occasionally, "But I'm just having a really hard time trusting Kisri."

Teyla laughed. The tunnel took the noise and twisted it, until a thousand ghostly laughs were echoing around them.

"Maybe don't do that again," John said uneasily.

"I agree."

**Next chapter, we find out a little bit more about Kisri! Competition to describe her is still going on.**


	6. ET

**In which we find out more about Kisri, Ronon loses his temper and Teyla and Sheppard fight a space lion!**

**E.T.**

"Kisri?" Rodney sounded hesitant.

"Yes?"

"What was your planet like?"

"It was windy."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"That's all?"

"No."

"Well?"

"You won't talk about your planet, why should I talk about mine?"

"We're not trying to destroy your planet," Ronon spoke up. "That's what the Wraith are going to do to Earth. They find out its location, they'll feed on everyone."

Kisri laughed mirthlessly. The noise rolled back and forth around them. "You don't think some people deserve it?"

"You can't mean that," Rodney said, horrified.

"I do."

"How can you believe that? You are a human!"

"I am. And to you, I'm a monster. So what does that make the people who created me?"

"You're going to blame your people for your own problems?" Ronon sounded disgusted.

"Why not? It's their fault. I would never have turned to the Wraith if it weren't for them. The Wraith are many things, but they're honest about what they intend to do. Humans… humans lie."

"Well yeah, but the Wraith lie too." Rodney was carrying the argument on his own now. Ronon had fallen strangely silent.

"Not about what they are. They've embraced the fact that they're predators. Humans try to pretend otherwise, so you don't expect it when they stab you in the heart."

Rodney couldn't find his voice for a moment, but when he did, it was full of disbelief. "What did your people do to make you so _angry_?"

"That's my business, not yours."

They walked in silence for several more minutes.

"Earth is green," Rodney said suddenly. "Really green. It was where I grew up, at least. And blue, as well. In fact… Earth is a really colourful place. You've got land, and the seas, and even the mountains, they're all these different colours."

He thought for a moment that Kisri hadn't taken the offering. But then: "My planet was purple."

"Purple?"

"Yes. It's formed of purple crystal, all mountains and valleys. There's soil at the bottom of the valleys, and none on the mountains at all. Nothing grows on them. They're treacherous to climb, but it can be done. There's not a lot of water. When it rained, the mountains would be full of streams and noise, and the elders would say that the spirits had returned. We made offerings to them. Otherwise, the only noise was the wind."

"What were your people like?"

This time Kisri did refuse to answer. Rodney couldn't even be sure she had heard the question. Wisely, he dropped the matter. Ronon, on the other hand, did not.

"When did you meet Todd?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I want to know why people become worshippers. People who weren't kidnapped and brainwashed by the Wraith."

"I answer your question, you answer one of mine."

"Fine."

"Your question is why people go to the Wraith willingly?"

"Yes."

"The Wraith make you _strong_. They give you the gift of life, and it's as if the world around you slows. You can dance and fight forever and a day." She paused. "But you knew that already, didn't you? You know what it's like to have life coursing through your veins."

Ronon twitched. His treachery – as he called it; everyone else called it 'torture and brainwashing' – was still a sore spot. He hadn't realised Kisri knew about it. "How did you–"

"You're famous. You _and_ your friends. The Runner who lived for seven years? Who runs with the descendants of the Ancients? You have almost as many worshippers as the Wraith."

"Oh cool. Do you think they'll put my face on another flag?" McKay asked eagerly.

"What's your question?" Ronon demanded.

"I don't know if I have one yet."

"Make up your mind."

"Alright. In all your travels, can you honestly tell me that there is nobody in the galaxy who deserves punishment for their actions?"

Ronon stayed silent. McKay wanted to interrupt, but the tension in the silence told him it might be a better idea to stay out of this one.

"Well?" Kisri goaded him. "You travelled for seven years and only met lovely, welcoming people?"

"You know that's not true."

"Oh, well, maybe I'm being too vague. The other Satedans, they were all shining examples of humanity, weren't they? All brave and strong and trust–"

She broke off with a strangled yelp as Ronon pinned her to the wall, one forearm pressed to her throat, the other hand holding a gun to her temple. He was breathing heavily, almost too angry to speak. "Don't you _dare_ talk to me about Sateda," he hissed. "The Wraith destroyed us because we tried to defend ourselves. I will _never_ regret that."

"Ah, Ronon?" McKay said timidly. "Ronon, let her go. Come on, Ronon, we need her alive. I don't know the way through this place, do you?"

Kisri's eyes were fixed on Ronon's. "The only reason you're this angry is because you know I'm right," she croaked. "Satedans were just like the rest of us, weren't they? They fought and lied and betrayed each other. You knew some who deserved to die." She saw his face change, and managed a breathless laugh. "I knew it. I'm right."

"Are you suicidal?" Rodney squawked. "Stop talking!"

"Don't ever talk about my planet again," Ronon told her, the edge in his voice sharp enough to cut through steel. "Or I will kill you." He stepped back, releasing her.

"Listen–" McKay began.

"Maybe," a deep voice from further down the tunnel said, "You should practice what you preach."

"_Shissin_," Kisri cursed. "They found us."

* * *

><p>"How do you think the others are going?" John asked.<p>

"They are fine, John," the Athosian replied soothingly. "I am sure that they are fine."

"Yeah… It's just…"

"You are worried Kisri will harm them?"

"Kisri? Hell no. I'm worried Ronon will lose his temper, kill her and he and McKay will starve to death." He snorted. "You can't tell me you've forgotten his reaction when Woolsey said to bring Kisri along?"

Teyla winced. That particular shouting match was already reaching legendary status. "I believe we can trust Kisri."

"I don't. She's already betrayed humanity once by working for the Wraith, you think she'd blink twice about screwing us over?"

"She needs us to get out of this maze."

"If Todd only has one plan to get to the centre of this maze, I'll eat my favourite radio. I don't trust Todd, and I don't trust the people working for Todd. And," he added, "I don't trust Ronon alone around anyone who worships the Wraith."

"Doctor McKay will keep him from doing anything rash," Teyla suggested.

"McKay? Stop Ronon? Right."

"Colonel Sheppard," Teyla said suddenly. "Did you hear that?"

Sheppard stopped and listened. "No."

"There it is again."

This time Sheppard heard it. A scratching noise, barely audible. Like claws skittering off tiles. Or off rock.

It was getting louder. Louder meant closer.

They were being followed.

**Sorry, ran out of patience for the space lions in this chapter. Next one, I promise.**


	7. Alien vs Predator

**ALIEN VS. PREDATOR**

"Uh, Kisri?" McKay asked hesitantly, staring cross-eyed at the weapon aimed at his heart. "Uh, who are these guys?"

"You remember when I told your leader that he wouldn't be the first to try to kill me?" Kisri asked, slowly raising her hands to eye level so that the three people facing them could see that they were empty. "Nor was Daras here, but he's the only one to have tried more than once."

The man with red hair laughed. It rang with the light-hearted recklessness of a true sociopath. "Kisri. I heard you were dead."

"Daras. I had hoped the same was true for you. You down here for the treasure too?" She cocked her head significantly, as if she were trying to tell him something. He hesitated, then nodded.

"That would be right. Who are these jesters?" He gestured with his weapon at Ronon and McKay. The two worshippers flanking him, a man and a woman, were less sanguine. In fact, they were borderline twitchy.

"This is Rony. He's a _friend _of mine." Kisri tilted her head meaningfully. Ronon stiffened as he realised what she was casting him as.

"A _friend_?" Daras repeated. "You got proof of that?"

"Show them the scar," Kisri said, nodding at Ronon. For a moment he didn't move, then, reluctantly, he pulled his collar down, exposing the fading, star-shaped scar on his chest. Daras nodded in satisfaction, and turned to McKay.

"And the short one?"

"Not a friend." Clearly she wasn't sure if McKay had a scar that would let him masquerade as another worshipper like Ronon's did. "But, he knows how to get through traps, and we've had more than enough of those already."

"Tell me about it. There were six of us when we landed."

"We were five before we ran into you and yours."

"Sorry about that," Daras said insincerely. "Couldn't tell who you were, in the gloom, you know."

"Doesn't matter, Rod and his friends were just in it for the _treasure_," Kisri said meaningfully. "So is Rony."

McKay didn't know what was going on. Everyone knew why they were down here. Kisri sounded like a teenager trying to remind her friend of the excuse they were using to leave the house so that they could go to a party.

On the other hand, if the other worshippers didn't know that he and Ronon knew, they might have room to manoeuvre.

"So?" Kisri prompted. "Do you know the way to the treasure?"

"Yes," Daras said slowly. "But… we may have been… turned around."

"You're lost," Kisri said bluntly. "We're not."

That was such a blatant lie that Ronon and McKay exchanged glances. It would be interesting to see Kisri keep that one rolling. "So you're saying you could guide us?"

"Right to the centre of the planet. I need these two, though," Kisri said, gesturing at Ronon and McKay. "Call it… insurance."

* * *

><p>"What did Kisri call them?" Sheppard asked, unslinging his gun slowly. "Gollums?"<p>

"I believe they were called gogoms."

"Don't suppose you remember if she said they were bulletproof?"

"I do not recall."

"Well, I guess we're about to find out the hard way."

The skittering noise increased, then stopped. There was a moment of silence, in which Sheppard imagined ears twitching and nostrils twitching; then a deep, chuckling noise rolled down the tunnel towards them.

"That's remarkably unsettling," John commented, unnerved. "Is that… what is that, a growl?"

The noise came again. This time it was echoed by another voice, in a higher pitch. "There is more than one of them," Teyla said.

"Yeah, but how many more?" The way the tunnel distorted the noise made it almost impossible to count the different voices, but the first two had been joined by at least three more.

"I believe there are five of them," Teyla said.

"Goddamn maze with its goddamn traps and its goddamn space hyenas…" John growled. "Alright, let's try retreating. Maybe they're just trying to get us out of their territory."

"This whole maze is probably their territory, John."

"Alright, their _immediate_ territory. Look, it just seems to me that it might not be a bad idea to walk _away _from the space hyenas, alright?"

Slowly, he and Teyla began retreating. The soft chuckles followed them.

"They are following us."

"Bets on how they'd react to gunfire?" John asked.

"I believe it may be our best option."

"Alright, count of three, be ready to run. One… Two…" A deep, hissing growl rolled down the tunnel, and John saw a shadow move. "THREE!"

As the gunfire lit up the tunnel, Sheppard finally saw the gogoms that were stalking him and Teyla. They were stocky creatures, as Kisri had said, but apart from that, all he could make out were blocky heads, a beaded, lizard-like hide and teeth. Lots and lots and lots of teeth.

They recoiled from the bullets, and a high-pitched whistling noise told Sheppard he had injured at least one of them. Then he and Teyla were running, pelting headlong down the corridor.

"These things… don't give up…" John panted, using the movement of turning a corner to pause and fire down the tunnel once more. The gogom pack pursuing them ran right into the hail of gunfire, but it didn't thwart them.

"JOHN!" Teyla yelled. Sheppard wheeled around and found her facing a dead end, with no symbols in sight and only the picture of a doorway carved into the stone.

"They built a flying city and they can't manage a door?" Sheppard yelled. "Come on!"

Teyla was pressing on the symbol, trying to turn it or move it or do anything at all. "Hold them off," Sheppard ordered, taking her place and praying that his Ancient gene would get a response out of the door. Nothing happened; the symbol was just that, a mark carved into the rock.

"They have stopped," Teyla whispered.

"They're waiting for us," John said grimly. "They must know that this is a dead end. They probably chased us into it on purpose."

"We cannot stay here."

"No arguments on my part." A scratching noise caught John's attention, and he looked up, just in time to see a dark shape detach from the wall and launch itself at him. With a yell of alarm, he brought his gun up, but the gogom fell on him, knocking him onto his back.

Its teeth had been aimed at his stomach. The creature hissed in frustration as they tore through the vest to find Sheppard's body armour underneath. Suddenly, it lunged forwards and tried to fasten on his throat, but Sheppard jammed his forearm between the creature's jaws, yelling in pain as its teeth punctured his flesh.

He couldn't reach his knife, but his gun was still in his hand. Thrusting the gogom back, Sheppard managed to get the gun muzzle under its jaw, and pulled the trigger with a vengeance. Bullets tore through its thick neck, and with a pained whistle, the creature recoiled and fell to the ground, twitching.

Sheppard hauled himself wearily to his feet and stepped away from the dying gogom. Teyla, seeing the last of them off with some well-placed gunfire, glanced over at him, and her eyes widened. "Colonel! You must let me treat that…"

"We need to get to safety first," Sheppard croaked. "We need to work out how to get through this god-damned door."

"The Ancients would not have made their maze impassable, surely," Teyla said, worried.

"Unless we took a wrong turn somewhere, which, you got to admit, is looking kind of likely," Sheppard told her. He was starting to feel a mite dizzy.

"Colonel, let me bind your arm."

"We don't have time–" Suddenly, he sat down, his legs too weak to support him.

"I am treating you," Teyla told him, in a voice he imagined she was practicing for when Torren grew old enough to give her trouble.

"Ok, I guess we have time," he told her meekly.

Teyla smiled and began examining his arm. As she turned away to retrieve a bandage from her pack, she allowed her worry to show on her face, just for a moment. The wound was more serious than she had realized. Sheppard was very badly injured.

**Oh no! How will they make it? Is Sheppard going to survive? Will the space hyenas return? What will happen to the other three? Will I ever be less melodramatic? (no). Tune in next week to find out!**


	8. I am Number Four

**I AM NUMBER FOUR**

Teyla had bandaged his arm, stopped the bleeding, and given him something to eat. Now she was insisting that he rest for a moment while she stood guard.

Sheppard's mind wouldn't stop spinning though. Something about the battle was bothering him, and surprisingly, it wasn't the chunk of flesh missing from his forearm. It was related to that, though…

He leaned his head back against the wall and began moving it from side to side, enjoying the feeling sensation of sliding from side to side effortlessly. Suddenly, he sat bolt upright.

"Teyla?" Sheppard said, "Is it just me, or is this rock really smooth?"

Teyla gave him a look that told him she thought he had lost his mind. "Perhaps you should not talk, Colonel…"

"Relax, I'm not delirious. I think. Humour me. This rock, it's pretty smooth, right?"

"Yes. It is almost like glass."

John struggled to his feet before she had a chance to protest. "And those gogoms, they got little claws?"

"Their claws are quite thin," Teyla agreed. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm wondering, how did a big guy like him," Sheppard nudged the dead gogom with his boot, "Get all the way up a hard, smooth, vertical wall with little claws like his?"

The light bulb over Teyla's head clicked on almost instantly. "You believe that there is a ledge."

"Maybe." Sheppard stepped back and craned his head to look at the space above the carved door. "And maybe this door doesn't open because it isn't a door. Does that patch of rock look darker than the rest to you?"

"I will check," Teyla said instantly. "Are you strong enough to lift me?"

"I'll manage." Sheppard knelt; Teyla stood on his shoulder, and with a grunt of effort he stood. Teyla was _heavy_. Small as she was, she was almost entirely muscle.

"There is a space here," Teyla called. "It is narrow, but it is possible to wriggle through."

"Where does it go?" Sheppard called.

"I cannot tell."

"Can you see the ledge?"

"Yes. It is to the right of the tunnel." Teyla suddenly pulled herself up off John's shoulder, and hoisted herself up onto the ledge. "There must be handholds somewhere. I will keep watch while you look for them."

Sheppard didn't blame her. Saving Ronon's life in the middle of an adrenaline rush was one thing. Lifting a man in full body-armour was another dance entirely. He walked back down the middle of the tunnel, listening to the rustling noises made by Teyla shadowing him on the ledge two metres above.

"You think those gogoms will fit up the tunnel after us?" John called up.

"It does not look big enough for them, and I saw no signs of claw marks," Teyla replied reassuringly.

"Keep an eye out," John ordered. "We know they know that ledge is up there. I'd hate to find out that they know about those tunnels too, especially if it happens while we're stuck in one." He paused as a pile of rocks caught his eye. They were lying against one wall and looked almost artistically placed… too artistically placed…

"Colonel, there are claw marks on the ledge."

"Yeah, I think I just found the way up," Sheppard agreed. "This is gonna be fun with one hand."

"Here." Teyla lowered the butt of her gun. "I will help you once you get close enough."

Sheppard took a tentative step onto the pile. A stone rolled away under his foot, but he gritted his teeth and waded in. It took a few attempts, but after a while he worked out what stones were stable and what ones weren't to be trusted. The Ancients had made this tricky, not impossible. It got more difficult the closer he came to the top, but just as he began to think that there was no way to make it up to the ledge with one hand, Teyla tapped him on the shoulder with her gun, reminding him that she was there.

"What kind of parents," John growled, scrambling awkwardly onto the ledge, "Makes their kid go through that just to be called an adult?"

"Ronon's people aren't the only ones who had coming of age rituals," Teyla said fairly.

"Yeah, but on Earth it's going out and getting legally drunk for the first time." Sheppard didn't correct her use of present tense when talking about the Satedans; it made Ronon feel better and he suspected that it reassured Teyla as well. In her mind, if the Satedans could survive a war with the Wraith, then there was hope for every society, the Athosians in particular. "I mean, floors that drop out beneath you? You don't think that's a bit much?"

"We should keep moving." Teyla was too diplomatic to start a fight with him, but that just made John more determined. As they wriggled along, he continued,

"And what would have happened if those gogom things had been down here when they were sending their kids down? You really think an Ancient with no weapons could have fought them off?"

"They might have had knives."

"I guess." Sheppard watched Teyla crawl down the ledge in front of her and bit his tongue to keep from saying anything inappropriate. She was married, a mother, under his command and a close personal friend. Her boot was also dangerously close to his face, and he doubted he would get away with blaming it on blood loss.

Still, it was a remarkably nice view.

* * *

><p>The other worshippers didn't trust Kisri. That much was apparent. As they walked through the tunnel, Daras kept her by his side at the front of the group, watching her like a hawk. Leena and Harwin, the other two, walked right behind them, leaving Ronon and McKay to trail along at the end.<p>

"Shouldn't, uh, shouldn't I be walking at the front?" McKay called, unable to bear the silence any longer. "I mean, I'm the traps guy, right?"

Ronon gave him a look that said _shut up_ in no uncertain tones, but McKay was getting increasingly edgy about being separated from Kisri.

"He's right," Kisri said to Daras.

Daras nodded grudgingly. "Up you come, then."

McKay moved forwards eagerly. Ronon followed, with a dangerous glare for Harwin when he opened his mouth to say something. The tunnel wasn't wide enough for three people to walk side by side, so before Daras could complain, Kisri dropped back to walk beside Ronon.

"So where are you from, Rod?" Daras asked casually.

"Stop flirting, Daras," Kisri called out, sparing McKay from coming up with a lie. "You'll make him blush."

McKay _was_ bright red.

"I just want to know if we can trust him, is all," Daras called.

"_Kish'Kirin _gave me his approval to bring whoever I needed. I won't have you chasing them off because you're jealous you didn't get there first."

"You know, Kisri, our queen was saying that yours hasn't been seen since she took over the alliance," Daras said casually. "We were all wondering where she had gotten to."

Ronon wanted to laugh. Kisri's 'queen' was in another part of the maze with Colonel Sheppard at that very moment. "Wonder that in front of _Kish'Kirin_ and he'll turn your hair another shade of red," Kisri said in a dangerous voice. "The affairs of our hive are none of your concern."

The words struck a sour note in Ronon. _Our hive. _These people were worshippers, and his enemies. He was outnumbered two to one… but he wasn't, because with Kisri, it was three against three. He wanted to growl in frustration. His mind was having trouble wrapping around the fact that the fourth worshipper in the tunnel with him was his ally.

He turned his head to look at Kisri as she walked. Red clothing, black hair, blue eyes, creamy pale skin… she was human, and beautiful, but she served their greatest enemies without any sign of shame or regret. He couldn't understand it. He couldn't imagine anything that was bad enough to turn you against your own kind.

Kisri looked up and met his eyes. For a moment, she looked angry. Then a sweet smile grew on her face. "Keep staring at me and your eyes will fall out."

"She'll cut them out, more likely," Leena grumbled under her breath behind them.

Kisri half-turned. "Would you like me to teach you how, Leena?"

"That's enough," Daras ordered. "There's a fork up ahead, Kisri. Which do we take?"

Kisri stepped up and made a show of examining the symbols carved in the wall. "Left."

"It looks like it leads to the bowels of the earth!" Harwin complained, looking down the tunnel.

"So you should feel right at home," Ronon growled.

Kisri glared at him, trying to remind him to behave like a worshipper. He glared right back. Daras looked at them both and began laughing.

"You, my friend," he said, clapping Ronon on the shoulder, "Have chosen the wrong woman."

"Tell me about it." Ronon resisted the urge to break the other man's hand. It seemed like something that might give him away.

Harwin suddenly sniffed. "Do you smell that?"

"I didn't do it." McKay flushed a brighter red as everyone turned to stare at him. It was junior high all over again.

Daras opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground without a sound. Ronon drew his weapon. He hadn't survived for seven years as a Runner by ignoring his instincts, and right now they were screaming louder than the alarms of Atlantis during the famous car-on-fire incident. Suddenly, he caught a whiff of a cloying, sickly sweet smell, and gagged. The walls around him began to melt, but even through the swirling colours, he saw the blur of red that was Kisri fall to the ground, just as Daras had, just as Leena and Harwin were doing even now.

His knees hit the ground, his gun fell from his hand, and all around him his world was dissolving. A faint voice in his ear was yelling, "Ronon! Ronon!"

It was a faint thread connecting him to reality, but he grasped it with all of his strength and tenacity.

It was all he had left.

* * *

><p>Far above their heads, Todd stood in his control room and watched the screen. His second-in-command approached his elbow and said harshly, "The other hive approaches. It will be here in a day."<p>

"Yes, I see that," Todd said, sending a wave of irritation in his underling's direction. He was looking at a screen that was telling him the exact same thing, far less obnoxiously.

The other Wraith resisted for a moment to ask one more question. "Has the human made it to the center?"

"Not yet," Todd admitted, his face expressionless. "Soon." He hoped it would be soon, at least. He couldn't expect to hold off the other hive for long if it came to a fight.

Still, he wasn't worried. Sheppard and his team were the stuff of legends, and Kisri had never failed him yet.

**Ok! Points to Kinetikat for her description of Kisri, and for her awesome story which gave me inspiration for the last part. (Blinde Guide: get into it.)**

**Also, the car-on-fire incident is something I made up. I might make it into another fic if enough people are interested (hint-hint-nudge-nudge).**


	9. The Thing from Another World

**In which we learn more about Kisri, as promised to diama56!**

**Part of this chapter is flashbacks, so stay with me until the end.**

**THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD**

Ronon blinked. There was a soft voice talking in his ear. A soft, female voice, as sweet as honey. It brought back memories of sunlight and happiness. He had never been so happy as when he was with her. His life had never been as dark as the days right after he had lost her. Was she really back with him again?

"Melena?" he mumbled, reaching out for the blurry shape beside him.

"What? No, you idiot, it's me!" A distinctly un-lovely vision came into focus, namely, the worried face of one Rodney McKay.

Ronon sat up and pushed past Rodney, looking around vainly. "Melena… Rodney?"

"Yes! Yes, it's me." Rodney looked terrified. "What happened? You and the others just collapsed. They're still unconscious."

"It was the gas," Ronon mumbled, repeating the words as Melena whispered them to him. She had worked at a hospital, after all. Melena hadn't been a stupid woman. "Where is Kisri?"

"She's here." Rodney was actually kneeling next to the worshipper. "I poured half my water on her, but nothing happened. She's out of it."

Ronon knelt clumsily. Kisri's eyes were wide and staring, her skin was pale and feverish, and she was panting.

"We need to leave, Ronon," Rodney said, worried. "I mean, if it's the gas that's affecting you, we need to get as far away from it as possible."

"I can't leave, Rodney. Melena's here."

"Ronon, buddy…" Rodney's voice was as gentle as he could make it. Sheppard had told him who Melena was. "Ronon, Melena is dead. Remember? She died on Sateda."

"I can hear her again, Rodney. I can hear her voice. She's asking me to help her. I can't leave her. I have to help her."

"Ronon, it was the gas. Melena isn't here. I'm here, and you're here, and Kisri is here, and unless you snap out of it and help me carry her out, then Kisri won't be here for much longer either!" Rodney snatched up Kisri's wrist and brandished it at him. "She's almost going into cardiac arrest, Ronon! Feel her pulse!"

"Melena," Ronon whispered.

"Ronon, there's nobody here! Melena is dead. WE NEED TO GO!" Rodney took a deep breath to calm himself. "Ronon, trust me. I'm your friend, aren't I? Aren't I?"

"What?"

Rodney sighed in frustration. This would clearly be a 'baby-steps' situation. "Am I your friend?"

"Yes."

"Am I a scientist?"

"Yes."

"Am I a remarkably clever and suave scientist who is perhaps the most informed mind in the Pegasus galaxy?" Ronon's lips quirked, and Rodney added quickly, "Don't bother answering that, we both know the answer is yes." He paused, then continued, "Do you remember that Melena is dead?"

Ronon's shoulders slumped. "Yes."

"So you can't be hearing her voice, can you? I mean, she can't be here speaking to you."

Ronon's head was bowed, so Rodney couldn't see his face. Suddenly, with a surge of movement, he stepped forwards, bent down and scooped up Kisri, and slung her over his shoulder, and began striding down the passage.

Rodney breathed a sigh of relief to a god he was too smart to believe in and followed his companion.

Ronon, carrying Kisri, glanced back once. He had met Melena in summer, when she had treated him for a concussion and scolded him soundly for not wearing a sparring helmet. Now, it seemed as if she stood in that same golden light, waving a sad farewell at him before stepping back into the shadows where she belonged.

* * *

><p>The ropes were loose, and so was the dirt. Nisaara tried to stop sobbing, she needed the air, she needed every bit of air she could get. Her hands were free almost instantly, and she used them to clear the space near her face, creating a hollow for her to move her head in.<p>

They had buried her alive.

She kept moving, wriggling, forcing her way upwards. The feast-day pit had been much shallower this year, because in the heat nobody had wanted to work too hard. That would save her, the summer she had been accused of bringing.

Maybe she had brought it. Maybe she had known she would have to be saved. No, that was stupid. If she hadn't brought the summer, it wouldn't have saved her in the first place. She wasn't really a kisri, not really a dark sorceress, not truly an evil beyond sufferance. Surely not.

In the silence, the words they had spoken a lifetime ago rang in her ears.

"_This kisri has lived among us with her dark sorceries, but now I say no more! Her curse has driven away the spirits of water! We must banish this blight from our village! She shall fall, and the rest of her foul blood shall fall with her!"_

"_NO! NOT RANNI! SHE'S DONE NOTHING, SHE'S A CHILD, KISH JIRIN, STOP THEM, DON'T LET THEM HURT RANNI…"_

No friendly voices. Nobody protesting her innocence. Where had Kin been? Where had he been? She had seen him, she knew it. He had been there. Where was his voice?

"_Kish Jirin! Tell them to stop, I'm not a kisri, you know I'm not–"_

"_Your parents died, didn't they?"_

"_That was the sickness! Your wife died of it too!"_

She knew now that that was her mistake. That was how the wisma had gotten to him: he so badly needed someone to blame for his wife's death, and Nisaara had been handed to him like a feast-day meal.

"_YOU SEE? YOU SEE HOW SHE GLOATS ABOUT HER DEEDS AND MOCKS THOSE SHE INJURED?"_

"_Ranni will get a quick death." _Jirin's voice had been so hard, so cold. _"That's all I will do, and that for you parents, not for you. Kisri."_

The voices echoed and redoubled, bounding around her grave, thudding like drums in her mind, making her want to clutch her temples in anguish, to make the noise stop. She couldn't waste the time, though.

Nisaara clutched her sanity tightly, still sobbing, and kept worming upwards. They had buried her alive, and left her, and Ranni, oh god, what had happened to Ranni? A quick death, Jirin had said. Nisaara had to be quicker, she had to save Ranni…

* * *

><p>Kisri would have liked to come to in a strong, dramatic fashion, but as it was, she woke up to find herself clutching McKay's hand and whimpering. The instant her senses returned to her, she flung his hand away and sat bolt upright, scrubbing the tears from her face.<p>

"What happened?" she croaked.

"There was some kind of gas," McKay said nervously, glancing from her to Ronon. "It induced hallucinations."

"Memories," Ronon said from where he was seated against the wall. "Not hallucinations."

"You…" Kisri stopped to clear her throat. "You saw them too?"

"Yes." His tone made it clear that he would not discuss it, and for once Kisri didn't want to know more. If they were as painful as hers, then he could keep them and welcome. Instead, she turned to McKay. "Why not you?"

"I think it must only affect the people that have been fed upon by the Wraith," he said. "I mean, it affected the worshippers much worse than Ronon."

'The worshippers'. Not 'the other worshippers.' Already they were willing to forget that she wasn't one of their precious expedition. For some reason, it angered Kisri. "I _am _a worshipper," she snapped. "And I suggest we keep moving."

"You can't even stand," Ronon said, looking at her.

Determined to prove him wrong, Kisri pulled herself to her feet, let go of the wall… and immediately fell over. Her legs were weak and rubbery, and she felt entirely drained and empty.

"We need to rest," Ronon continued. "We'll stay here for a while. Get some sleep."

"I'm not tired," Kisri lied.

He shrugged. "Fine." Though his haunted eyes said otherwise, he added, "I'm not tired either."

* * *

><p>They had buried her in the rocky wasteland below the village. This was where the shining amethyst mountains ended, but before the rich black soil began. By the time her hand broke into the air, she was close to going mad. As she pulled herself from the grave, she saw that the world had beaten her to that particular party. In front of her, the village burned, tinder-dry houses going up in flames. Whining shapes whizzed by overhead.<p>

It was a culling.

It was also late at night. Freeing herself had taken far longer than she thought. I shouldn't have survived, Nisaara told herself numbly, stumbling towards the village. There wasn't enough air down there. But I did survive. Oh, Ranni, please, Ranni…

She had regained enough of her sense to slip through the village unnoticed. The Wraith were around, but she was one person, and they were concentrating on herding the villagers into the space in front of the kas'kasa. Nisaara only wanted to sneak in through the back.

Please let them not have had time to finish it.

* * *

><p>McKay fell asleep within half an hour. She and Ronon sat there, across from each other, not speaking, not moving, barely breathing. Ronon didn't know about Kisri, but his own thoughts were in a turmoil, dredging up long-buried images of a happier time, dangling them before his eyes in a form of torture more excruciating than anything the Wraith had ever dreamed up.<p>

He broke the silence first. "Did you hear the voices too?"

Kisri shook her head. She seemed to be too drained to stay guarded. She needed to talk, to share some of it. "I saw memories. I _relived_ memories."

"I saw someone I loved. She's dead now." That made it sound so simple, so easy. It wasn't.

A harsh laugh escaped Kisri's lips. "So did I, actually."

The words kept spilling out of his mouth, chinks in his armour that he had never admitted existed even to himself. "I've mourned her for seven years, but whenever I look at a woman, I still see her." He would always see her. She had been so beautiful.

"Tell this to one of your friends from Atlantis, Dex," Kisri said, tired. "I'm a traitor and a monster, remember? I serve the Wraith, a fate I chose. I'm not the one to show your heart to. I'd just stab it, like everyone else I knew."

Ronon thought about this for several minutes. If that were true, why did she look to be in so much pain? He had been lied to before. This worshipper was good, but she wasn't the best he had ever met. She had seen someone she loved as well, and wept for them too. "Does the red stand for mourning?"

Kisri fingered her red cloak. "People do that? Just put on clothing that shows how weak they are?"

Ronon grunted. He had thought the same thing briefly when he had seen Sheppard wear black in honour of his father's death. "It shows that you've lost someone important."

"That's a stupid tradition. May as well wear a target, or a sign saying, 'Come and get me, I'm weak and helpless and crying!'" She shifted and settled. "What was her name? The woman you saw."

"Her name was Melena." Ronon smiled slightly, certain he was about to infuriate her. "An answer for an answer. What does the red stand for?"

Kisri's head shot up and she glared at him half-heartedly, before replying with a completely straight face, "On my planet, you wore red if you were thought to be a sorcereress."

* * *

><p>She found Ranni's body in front of the kas'kasa's alter. The wisma's blade had sliced her throat. A quick death. Her daughter's eyes stared blindly at the ceiling, and as she cradled Ranni to her chest, Nisaara felt her heart break.<p>

Where before she had heard the voices of those who had killed her, now she heard her mother's, telling her stories to scare her to sleep, just as she had once done to Ranni.

_A kisri bathes in the blood of children and takes their life to feed her own._

Nisaara stooped, picked up the wisma's knife, and left the kas'kasa. This time she went by the front steps. The villagers were huddled in the main square, sobbing and cowering in fear. She stood there, waiting for them to notice her. When the first woman screamed in terror and pointed, she walked down the stairs, moving purposefully, ignoring entirely the Wraith who had turned to stare at this dirty, blood-streaked creature.

One started forwards, but another, the leader, hissed a command, and the warrior stopped.

_A kisri cannot be killed. She can only be banished, for a year or a day or forever. She won't return unless you have something of hers. If you've kept what rightfully belongs to her, then she'll return to claim it._

Nisaara stopped in front of those who had been her people. "I want Jirin," she said in a reasonable tone. "I want the wisma. And I want Kin too."

Jirin and the wisma were shunted forwards. Both stared at her with eyes as wide as the moons above. "We killed you," the wisma whimpered. "You're dead."

"My daughter is dead," Nisaara said, still in that same cold, even tone. "You gave her a quick death. I would give you the same, but she was innocent, and you aren't."

She lunged forwards and buried the point of the wisma's knife in the woman's belly. The wisma sank to her knees, whimpering in pain, trying to hold her intestines in place. Nisaara turned to Jirin.

"Jirin." He flinched. "Where's Kin?"

"The Wraith–" the man stuttered. "They aged him, they're here–"

"I know they're here. Kin is dead?"

"Yes."

Jirin had been the one to spare Ranni from being buried alive. Nisaara would never forgive him for that. If Ranni had been buried with Nisaara, they would both be alive, and far away from here. Accordingly, she cut his throat and left him to drown in his own blood.

_A kisri deals with demons and talks with nightmares, and what is worse is that they talk back to her._

When she turned, three Wraith were standing right behind her. Nisaara stared at them, incapable of feeling fear.

"I only wanted those two," she said. "You can have the rest."

Their leader had beads in his hair that clinked together as he looked her up and down. "Why did you kill them?" Yeah, like he cared.

"They tried to kill me." She could have said more - that they had killed the person she had loved most in the world, who had loved her most in the world, who had been _six years old_ - but that would have hurt too much. She couldn't handle grief. Not right now. She pushed it aside, refusing to give in to it.

"Your vengeance is fierce." The Wraith sounded as casual as if they weren't standing in the ruins of her village, with the two people she had murdered lying right behind her, and the others who were about to die behind them. In fact, he sounded approving. The tiniest spark of an idea lit in her brain.

"Fierce enough to come with you?" Nisaara asked.

The Wraith laughed.

"I mean it," she insisted. "Take me with you. I'll serve you."

"And in return?"

"In return you'll make me strong. Strong enough to set the world aflame."

She had heard tales of the Wraith worshippers, made strong by the evil they served. She wanted that. She wanted to be strong. She wanted to set the world on fire and watch it burn and dance in the ashes.

The Wraith looked at her more closely. He saw a young woman, blessed with beauty, with the cold fire of hatred burning in her eyes. He looked at the bodies on the ground behind her, and the fear on the faces of those who lived.

"What do they call you, human?" he asked.

She smiled, a cold, cruel smile. "Call me Kisri." As her lips parted, the glow from the fires turned her teeth to blood.

**I made up the way that Ronon and Melena met, but it's pretty likely, right? Melena was a nurse, Ronon kept getting his head bashed in in sparring… not such a leap. More Sheppard and Teyla next chapter. **

**I get the impression that everyone in the Stargate universe is in their twenties, thirties, maybe forties. Old enough to have had children, especially if they started young. So that's why Ranni was Nisaara/Kisri's daughter, not her sister.**


	10. The Darkest Hour

**Set slightly after the events of Chapter Nine…**

**Warning, slightly naughty language ahead.**

**THE DARKEST HOUR**

"Thank God we're not claustrophobic." Sheppard grunted, wriggling through the tunnel after Teyla. His arm throbbed whenever he moved it, and part of his mind was telling him to stop moving, to let it rest and heal. He ignored that part of his mind – once referred to by his ex-wife as the intelligence centre – completely.

"We are nearly at the end of the tunnel," Teyla called. Then she paused. Sheppard stopped quickly before he could crawl into her. _That _would have been awkward. "Colonel, do you hear that?"

"No," Sheppard said crankily. "What am I hearing?"

"Nothing."

Well, now he felt like a jerk. "Teyla, did you–"

"I am sure it was nothing," she replied stiffly.

They had been crawling through the tunnel for nearly an hour. That was the hint that told him they had been in there an hour too long. Teyla was turning into McKay, all hurt feelings and offended pride.

A moment later, and the phenomenon had vanished, as Teyla suddenly said, "Colonel, I am sure I hear something. It sounds like hissing."

"If the Ancients put freaking space snakes in this tunnel–" A million _Snakes on a Plane_ puns whipped through his head in an instant, and the temptation to say, "I have had it with these motherfucking snakes in this motherfucking tunnel…" became momentarily overwhelming.

"No, it is too regular. It sounds like… gas."

"Gas?" Sheppard considered slamming his head against the wall of the tunnel. They had just crawled through a tiny, tight, narrow tunnel for _sixty whole minutes_. Crawling through it backwards would be a massive pain in the rear, probably literally as well as figuratively. He was tired, he was hungry, his arm was killing him, and he wouldn't admit it, but he was starting to feel slightly claustrophobic. He was a pilot, for chrissakes, not a tunnel rat. The big blue sky was his arena, and god-damn did he miss it.

"I think we should keep going," he said firmly. "You said that you could see the end of the tunnel?"

"Yes, it is not far."

"Let's try and reach it before we pass out or something."

They began crawling faster, hauling themselves up the slightly-sloping floor of the tunnel. John couldn't exactly see the light at the end of the tunnel; the best he could do was a patch of darkness that was maybe not quite as dark as the rest.

He could hear it too now, a low, constant hissing. The gas was odourless, but it caught at the back of his throat and made him cough occasionally.

"Are you alright, Colonel?" Teyla called back.

"Yeah," Sheppard replied. "This stuff doesn't bother you?"

"It does not."

"That's–"

_Hey, Sheppard._

"What?"

"I am sorry, Colonel?"

"Did you say something?"

_It was me, you boofhead._

"No."

_See, that wasn't Teyla, it was me._

"Um, Teyla, not to alarm you, but I'm hearing voices."

_Wow, dude. Great way to sound sane… not!_

"Ok, who are you even meant to be?" Sheppard demanded.

"Colonel…"

"Relax, Teyla, I'm not talking to you."

_Idiot. 'Don't worry, Teyla, I'm not talking to you, I'm just talking to that voice in my head I just mentioned.' She's probably about to shoot you in self-defence, you know._

Sheppard glanced up. Teyla was nearly doubled over so that she could peer down at him in concern, but her hands were well away from her gun. "Colonel, we are very close to the end of the tunnel. We should keep moving."

_Why bother, Sheppard? You're going to die down here anyway._

"I think I would have preferred space snakes," Sheppard told Teyla as he followed her through the last few metres of the tunnel.

_Don't worry. With all the traps the Ancients packed in, plus the fuzzy native wildlife, there's probably a pit filled with space snakes in here somewhere._

"Surprisingly, that isn't making me feel better."

"John, perhaps the voice will go away if you do not respond to it."

_Don't count on it, buddy boy. I'm here to stay. Just you and me, forever._

John gritted his teeth and ignored it. He had finally reached open air, so with a sigh of relief, he crawled out of the tunnel and straightened, popping his spine.

"Oh that feels good."

_Yeah, because good feelings last sooo long down here._

_Don't be such a pessimist._ Sheppard nearly groaned: there were two of them now. _John might still live. Teyla probably won't, but John might. Maybe._

"Colonel!"

Well, the first voice was right about good feelings not lasting. John trotted over to where Teyla was kneeling, and nearly tripped over a limp body.

_Watch it, man. Would you want someone stepping on your face while you slept?_

"Whoa! Who are these guys?"

"I do not know, but they are not well." Teyla grabbed John's hand and guided it to the pulse on the unknown person's neck. John could feel it fluttering beneath his fingers.

"It must be that gas!" John realised. "Probably why I can't get the voices in my head to shut up either."

_Oh sure, blame the gas. You ever think maybe you just need a psychologist?_

_Talking to someone about your problems is a good idea, John. You should look into it._

"We should take these guys with us," John announced.

"Colonel, these are most likely the worshippers who shot at us." Teyla sounded like she couldn't believe Sheppard wanted to help these people.

Sheppard couldn't believe that Teyla didn't want to help these people. "Teyla, these are human beings, we aren't going to leave them to suffocate!"

_Attaboy, Sheppard._

_Yes, leaving them would make you as bad as the Wraith._

"Colonel…"

"That's an order, Teyla! Now, you grab that big one, and I'll take these two."

Sheppard seized the two worshippers by their torsos and half-lifted, half-dragged them down the tunnel. Teyla stared after him for a moment, then sighed and did the same to the one remaining worshipper.

They made it almost twenty metres before Sheppard had to give up. The two worshippers weren't really that heavy, but he was breathless and slightly dizzy and they felt like steel weights. "This should be far enough," he said.

"Colonel, we have saved them." Teyla's voice sounded like she was trying very hard to stay calm. "They will live. We should leave before they wake up."

"We can't! What if the gogoms come around and find them? They'd die."

"Colonel, these people are not our friends. They are worshippers–"

"They're still humans, Teyla, and I won't leave them to die. Besides, Kisri is a worshipper and you were saying just before that you trust her."

"And you were saying you did not!"

"Well, I've changed my mind."

_That's right, you show her who's boss._

"Weren't there two of you before?"

_Yeah, well… not enough to keep us going, you know? I got rid of that other guy._

"So you'll go away soon too."

_I guess…_

"Good. You still there? Hello? Hello?" He noticed Teyla staring at him and said placidly, "The voices in my head have gone." Suddenly he looked down and almost yelped. "What the hell? Teyla, we have to get out of here!"

Teyla looked like she had just seen the Ghost of You Can't Punch Your Superiors, leaning over Sheppard's shoulder shaking its finger at her. "Yes," she growled. "We should leave immediately. We should have left long ago!"

"You aren't going anywhere," a raspy voice growled at them. They both turned, to see the red-haired worshipper Teyla had dragged to safety sitting up and pointing a gun at them.

Sheppard swore.

**Ok, so Sheppard did something pretty dumb there. I blame it on the gas, messing with his head. He didn't relive any memories because I decided the gas would affect people differently. **


	11. Cowboys and Aliens

**Wrapping it up now… kind of…**

**COWBOYS AND ALIENS **

"We're lost."

"Does he always do this?" Kisri said to Ronon.

"State the obvious? Yeah."

Rodney scowled. Kisri and Ronon hadn't even been speaking to one another when they started moving again, but his continuous helpful commentary – he refuse to acknowledge Kisri's half-muttered comments about 'whinging' – had served to unite them like nothing else had down here.

The problem was, they had united against him. They were alternating between ignoring him, snapping at him and treating him like a child.

"Oh, would you two stop that?" he snapped.

"Stop what?" Ronon asked.

"Stop ganging up on me! I'm glad you guys can work together again, but it's really annoying when you're not treating me like I'm a member of the team."

"Stop saying that we're lost, then!" Kisri exclaimed, exasperated. "Of course we're lost! We got shot at, taken hostage and gassed. Why do you need to keep reminding us that these are bad things? Are you worried that we'll forget?"

"Sorry for trying to contribute!" Rodney snapped back.

Kisri bit her tongue and quite visibly took a very deep breath, restoring her calm. Ronon, who had seen McKay have this effect on, well, pretty much everyone, quickly decided that the time was ripe to point out something he had only just noticed. "I think the tunnel's heading back towards the surface. We've been walking uphill for a while now."

"Oh, great!" Rodney was smiling like a little kid. "We can get to the surface, rest for a bit, and make a trail or something so we can find our way out when we come back for Sheppard and Teyla."

"We need to get to the centre of the maze," Kisri said stubbornly. "We should turn around. We need to go back."

"We aren't going back," Ronon told her. "You want to go back, you're going on your own."

"But we had–"

"Sh!"

Kisri was too smart to argue with something that wasn't a personal insult. Rodney, on the other hand, opened his mouth to comment, in time to catch an elbow to the ribs. "Be quiet, _insa_, he can hear something."

"Footsteps," Ronon said slowly. "Like an animal. Can't tell where it's coming from with these echoes, though." He shook his head in irritation. "They make it sound like it has a thousand feet."

"Maybe it's harmless?" Rodney said weakly.

"The odds of that are pretty low," Kisri replied grimly. "We need to stay quiet. Sound is how they hunt underground. Sound and smell."

Without another word, the three kept moving, keeping to a quick walk. Ronon's face, whenever KIsri looked at it, remained worried; clearly, the creatures weren't going away.

"We should stand and fight," he declared finally.

Kisri shook her head. "The noise would just draw more of them. If we were injured and they smelled blood, it would be even worse. Trust me, we should keep going."

From the darkness behind them, they heard a noise. An odd, dragging noise, like someone was walking towards them with a stick dangling from one hand.

"Uh, Kisri? What is that?"

"I don't recognise it," she said, with a frown.

"There's a room ahead of us," Ronon whispered. "Passages leading off it. We hide there."

Kisri and Rodney scuttled into the room behind him. Rodney was about to follow Ronon into another passage when Kisri seized his arm, hissed, "Not in the same place!" and shoved him in a different direction. He supposed it made sense not to cluster where this whatever-it-was could kill them all in one fell swoop, but goddamn he wanted to be cowering behind Ronan's bulk right about now.

There were twelve passages leading off this chamber, like numbers on a clock. Assuming that they had come in by number twelve, Ronon was in eleven, Rodney was in two and Kisri had darted all the way across to duck behind the doorway of the number four tunnel. The whatever-it-was – and honestly, Rodney's money was on some sort of monster, because that was just how much faith he had in his own damned luck – would come out of the twelve o'clock tunnel too.

The tails of Kisri's red coat had only just whipped around the corner when Rodney saw movement in the gloom. What little light there was in these tunnels was reflecting off something _metallic. _Something large, thick, low to the ground and _metallic._ Hallucinations of space tanks floated through Rodney's mind for a moment before he mentally shook himself.

_Be cool. This is a WWSD situation: What Would Sheppard Do? Sheppard would stay cool. Sheppard would stay still. Sheppard… aw, who am I kidding, Sheppard would probably throw a block of C4 at that thing and pray that the tunnel didn't collapse on his head._

The rustling, dragging noise peaked, paused, and recommenced. It was heading his way, oh shit it was heading his way. He pressed himself against the tunnel wall, knew he shouldn't look, looked anyway.

A red light pierced the gloom of his tunnel. It seemed to fix on him for a moment, visually dissecting him. McKay nearly whimpered, but barely a second later the light had swept past, leaving him unharmed. It was followed by a long segmented body.

_Bugs. I hate bugs._

It was a giant metal centipede, clearly of Ancient design. That red eye was most probably a crystal of some sort. The fact that the thing had eyes meant it probably navigated the tunnels by white light or infrared. Which made it very unlikely it hunted by sound.

Which made it very likely that it already know Kisri, Ronon and Rodney were concealed around the room. A certainty, in his case.

_You're being paranoid, McKay. That thing moved right past you. You're fine._

Sheppard had admitted once that sometimes he heard McKay's voice in his head, advising him not to do something stupid. McKay would never admit it, but Sheppard popped up out of his subconscious occasionally too. Usually to point out the obvious. Right now, the little Sheppard-voice was saying, in its customary I-can't-believe-you-call-yourself-a-genius tone, _You have the Ancient gene, McKay. It's not going to eat the people who created it._

"Oh, crap," McKay whispered.

He had the Ancient gene. Ronon's body, showing the same stubbornness that came through in every part of the big man's nature, had never accepted the gene therapy. Kisri… if she had had the gene, Todd would have blazed through this maze long ago.

These thoughts flashed through his head in an instant. A plan took longer to arrive. So long, in fact, that it hadn't arrived when McKay jumped out of hiding and yelled, "Ronon! Kisri! RUN!"

The metal centipede reared into the air as Kisri sprinted out of her tunnel. The woman yelped, twisted to avoid it and swerved drastically, aiming to loop around it and meet up with Ronon. McKay leaped into the room. "Hey! Giant bug! Over here! I'm an Ancient! You have to listen to me! LOOK AT ME, I'M OVER HERE!"

The centipede didn't even tilt its head in his direction. It was focussed on Kisri, following her as she darted and ducked around its legs. She was moving _towards_ the thing, Rodney realised, cramping it, trying to tangle its long body in knots.

"MCKAY!" Ronon bellowed. "WHAT IS THIS THING?" There were several flashes of light: the big Satedan was firing at it, his shots bouncing off the metal hide like pebbles.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Rodney pressed himself up against the wall, avoiding a buffet from the thing's tail. If he had had his tablet with him, he could have shut this beastie down in a heartbeat. As it was, he was worse than useless.

"MAKE IT GO AWAY!"

"I want to," Rodney whispered helplessly. What kind of parent sent their child into a maze where one trap was an evil centipede Transformer? "I want to, I want to, I want to…"

Wait. If that wasn't an idea on the way then he was a duck.

Kisri screamed as one of the thing's legs caught her shoulder, sending her spinning into the wall, momentarily helpless. The noise shocked Rodney's idea into fruition, and he acted on it instantly. "Ronon!" he yelled. "Shoot its eyes!"

Ronon had been a soldier his entire life: he was used to obeying orders instantly, even if on occasion he decided not to. The big man stepped out of his tunnel, took a stance, and began shooting. His aim had always been the best in Atlantis, but the beast was moving and twisting and writhing as its massive head followed Kisri. "Kisri!" Rodney yelled. "STAY STILL!"

He saw the furious glance she shot his way, the look of utter rage. She didn't want to place her life in his hands, didn't want them to save her. She was used to saving herself: she didn't know how to trust them.

"STAY STILL!" Ronon roared. Kisri screamed a curse, skipped back, ducked down and stayed perfectly still.

The centipede swayed like a king cobra, slowly lowering its head towards the girl. McKay had no idea what would happen when the mouth made contact with human flesh, and he didn't intend to find out if he could help it.

Nor did he: the instant the head stopped twisting like a rollercoaster, five shots slammed into the creature's left eye. It threw its head back with a soundless shriek of rage, and twisted to the side, trying to use its right eye to locate the danger. A fatal mistake, as the very next instant Ronon took the second eye out as well, this time with a single shot.

Rodney sprinted over to his friends, pulling Kisri to her feet and propelling Ronon into the eleven o'clock tunnel. "Come on," he said, dragging them behind him. "That thing doesn't hunt by sound, it's blind, we should be fine."

"Wait," Kisri coughed. "Wait." She paused, clasping her chest in a way that made McKay picture broken ribs. "Saw… saw the symbol… Back there, tunnel to the centre of the maze…"

This time they didn't even argue. With Rodney hovering ready to support Kisri should she fall, the three of them scurried back to the round room. The centipede was still writhing and squirming in the middle of the floor; they skirted its massive bulk, making their way around the walls to the five o'clock tunnel.

"_Shiska,_" Kisri gasped, as they entered the tunnel. "You saved my life. _Shiska._"

"You're welcome." Rodney was blushing, damnit! "Really, it's nothing. It's just what we do, on… on earth… you know…"

"What was that thing, McKay?" Ronon demanded.

"I can't be sure..."

"Guess."

"Well, we know that the Ancients put in that rotating floor to discourage treasure hunters," McKay began ticking them off on his fingers, "The gas to discourage anyone who had been fed on by the Wraith... Honestly, I think that bug-thing was a machine."

"Yes, we saw," Kisri said waspishly.

"Like a guard dog," McKay continued. "It definitely saw me, but I think it was programmed to ignore anything with Ancient DNA and, well... kill everything else."

"If it had gone right it might have found you first," Kisri said to Ronon. He grunted in reply. "We are close," she continued. "We are very close to the centre of the maze."

"Holy shit," Rodney muttered. "We might make it alive! In time to, you know, starve to death because there is no way in hell I'm going back through that maze, but still…"

Ronon cocked an eyebrow at him. "Don't be so optimistic, McKay."


	12. Under the Mountain

**UNDER THE MOUNTAIN**

"Who are you?" the man demanded, rubbing his mouth with one hand. "How do you know Kisri?"

"Just take it easy," Sheppard said, raising his hands slowly. "Nobody needs to get hurt here. I'm John, that's Teyla. You got a name?"

The man swayed, confused. "Daras."

"Ok, Daras." John was watching the man closely. He was shaking, sweating, his hand wasn't steady. It was either withdrawal or the lingering after effects of the gas. John himself wasn't feeling so crash hot, and he hadn't gotten nearly as large a dose as Daras must have, so he was betting on the gas. "Kisri is a friend of ours."

"That's a lie. Kisri doesn't have friends." Daras snorted. "She hates humans."

"I don't know, she kind of grows on you after a while."

"Stop lying to me!"

Clearly this wasn't a man to joke around with. "Ok, I'll stop lying to you. Truth is, she asked us for help. Being the nice guys we are, we said we would."

"You can't trust her. She'll betray you."

"I'm not too worried about that." John's money would be on Ronon in a fight every single time.

"She's using you," Daras insisted. "Help me find her. We can kill her."

"She's guiding us through this maze. We kill her, we're stuck down here," John replied in his most reasonable tone. "I don't know about you, but this isn't where I want to die."

"You're right," Daras said slowly, lowering his weapon. "You're right."

"Of course I am."

"We need to find her, make her take us to the surface, and _then_ kill her."

John wasn't going to argue with a madman with a gun, though he couldn't imagine why Daras had decided that they were friends now. "That's a good plan."

"What about the other two?" Teyla interrupted. "They are still unconscious."

Daras looked at his unconscious friends, grunted, and turned his weapon in their direction. Before John could say a word, he had shot them both twice. John gritted his teeth; that amount of blood meant 'fatal'.

Teyla's eyes widened, but John caught her gaze and shook his head a tiny bit. They couldn't risk antagonising this worshipper.

"Let's go," Daras announced. "Come on. We need to find her."

"You're right," Sheppard muttered. "We do need to find them."

* * *

><p>"He has a weapon," Kisri whispered to Ronon and Rodney. Teyla, Sheppard and Daras were standing in the middle of a large round chamber. Kisrey and the men were crouched in the entrance of a tunnel leading into the room. They had almost walked into the first group a few seconds ago, before seeing the dim figures and stopping.<p>

"I can take him." Ronon was fingering his gun hilt lovingly, his eyes as hard as jade as he stared at the red-headed worshipper.

"That won't work, you'll hit Teyla and Sheppard," Rodney said impatiently. He was right: the pair from Atlantis were right in the line of fire.

"I didn't say I'd kill him. It'll be set to stun."

"He'll kill them if anything goes wrong," Kisri announced. "I'll show myself. He'll try and kill me, and you can kill him while he's distracted."

"That won't work either," Rodney said impatiently.

"It will!" Kisri insisted.

Rodney looked at Ronon. Ronon shrugged. "Best plan we got."

"It's a terrible plan."

"We're running out of time." Kisri glared at McKay. "Do you have any better ideas, Doctor?"

Rodney sighed a sigh of defeat. "No. Just… you know, be careful."

"Stay here and mind this," Ronon told him, handing him the canister of gas. "Kisri, go left. I'll go right. You distract him, I'll shoot."

Kisri took off without further discussion, staying low to the ground, wishing she were dressed in clothes a little less visible. Sheppard was still talking to Daras, trying to calm the man down. It wouldn't work. Kisri had met Daras on several occasions, and each time he had done nothing but reinforce her impression that he was as crazy as they came.

Teyla said something. Daras' reply was louder than before, and angrier. He came from a planet where women were treated poorly, Kisri knew. Teyla was setting him off. It was now or never, before someone got hurt.

"Daras," she said, standing up and hoping Ronon was in position.

* * *

><p>Ronon was stuck. His coat had snagged on a rocky outcrop and he had had to shed his sword before he could take it off. To avoid being heard, he had to move very, very slowly. He wasn't in position to shoot Daras when Kisri stood up.<p>

He did have a very good view of her getting shot, however.

* * *

><p>Kisri stumbled forwards, her hands pressed to her diaphragm, her eyes wide. Sheppard roared and tackled Daras, knocking the gun from his hand. Teyla ran to Kisri; Rodney sprang from the mouth of the tunnel; and Ronon leapt to his feet and lunged to Sheppard's aid.<p>

Daras fell to the ground with Sheppard on top of him, but as he did so, he got his feet between them and kicked. Sheppard flew over Daras' head and slammed into the rocky ground. As Daras rose to his feet, a gleaming knife appeared in one hand. No doubt he would have used it on Sheppard, but he didn't get the chance: Ronon placed himself between the two men, a knife in his own hand, and attacked.

Kisri, lying on the floor watching, noticed something. It was a ring of carvings in the ground, all the same symbol, in the very centre of the chamber.

"It's the last symbol," she told Teyla. "This is the last symbol for the maze. Why is it on the ground?"

"Lie still," Teyla insisted, running her hands over Kisri's torso, trying to find the wound. "You are injured."

Rodney crouched next to the two women, handgun in hand, clearly prepared to protect them from the vicious knife-fight going on a metre or so away. He had put the canister on the ground beside Kisri.

Sheppard got to his feet and pulled a handgun, yelling for Ronon to get out of the way. Daras, stronger and faster than either of them due to the Wraith enzyme, ducked under Ronon's knife and tackled the man, sending him crashing to the ground and causing Sheppard to skip back to avoid them.

Sheppard stepped inside the ring of symbols. They suddenly glowed blue, and the entire chamber floor shivered. The walls began to vibrate, and to Teyla it looked like parts of the wall were receding, sliding upwards into the roof of the cavern.

"Hey, Teyla," Kisri croaked.

"Yes?"

Kisri opened her mouth to say something, then paused, shook her head and sighed. "Never mind." Looking at McKay, she added, "We found the final chamber, Doctor. Maybe you should shoot Daras." She pointed at the man, and instinctively, Teyla and Rodney turned to look.

Suddenly, the world began to swim. Teyla tried to stand, but her legs were weak, and she was lying on the cave floor before she knew where she was.

She was still trying to figure it out when the blackness descended.

**Hm. What just happened? Tune in for the final instalment next!**


	13. Fire Maidens from Outer Space

**FIRE MAIDENS FROM OUTER SPACE**

It was the walls that had made Kisri realise where they were.

As the ring of symbols lit up like a circle of stars, she watched the hidden compartments reveal themselves, and knew she had to act. She only had seconds before the exit revealed itself, to her _and_ to the Lanteans.

She was going to say something to Teyla – maybe 'goodbye', 'thanks for the help', 'sorry about this'… she wasn't too sure. That would have given it away, though, so she just caught Teyla's attention, and that of Doctor McKay, too. While they followed one of her hands to look at Daras, they missed the other one, twisting the top off the gas canister.

_Kish'Kirin_ had sworn that this was the fastest acting sleeping gas known to Wraith kind. It took less than a second to fill the chamber, less than five to send Teyla, Ronon, Sheppard and McKay crashing to the ground.

Kisri watched Daras spin around in confusion for a few moments, and pushed herself to her feet, grunting. The bullet had been stopped by the body-armour under her coat, but it had really bruised her.

"Daras," she said, for the second time in five minutes.

He spun to face her; she drew the stunner hidden in her boot and shot him. He looked up at her, eyes wide, as he sank to the ground. She watched him lapse into unconsciousness and smiled.

One down.

The Ancients weren't the only ones who had worked out that worshippers were affected by some gases more than ordinary humans. The flip side of that was, of course, that they were immune to some. Kisri took a deep breath, half-expecting to collapse. Nothing happened.

Fastest gas known to Wraith kind. It really was.

As the roof separated, opening to the sky like a lily, the compartments were revealed. Stacks of Ancient crates, containing Kisri knew not what, sat there stolidly, covered in a thick coating of dust. Kisri hadn't bothered to ask what they contained – not that _Kish'Kirin _would tell her – her job had just been to find them.

Now came the mildly unpleasant part. She pulled a knife, gritted her teeth, and began digging in her arm. After thirty agonising seconds, she found the device and popped it out with the point of the knife.

The tiny cylinder was dead. The machine-zapping tunnel hadn't reacted to it because in terms of electricity, there was nothing to react to. Kisri didn't have the gene to activate it. Luckily, she was in a room with two people who did. Blood streaming down her arm and spattering to the ground, she picked up the cylinder, gave it a quick wipe, and placed it in the hand of Doctor Rodney McKay.

It lit up with that familiar turquoise light. Somewhere, _Kish'Kirin's_ screens had developed an insistent little icon, signifying that the Ancient distress beacon had been activated. Kisri sat down, leaned against the wall wearily, and waited.

A dart flew overhead two minutes later, and a culling beam deposited a group of drones with a scientist to oversee them. The drones ignored Kisri and the Lanteans completely, moving immediately to the walls of the cavern and beginning to stack the boxes in the middle of the room.

"The Commander wants to speak to you," the scientist told Kisri disdainfully.

"_Shiska _for delivering the message," Kisri said in much the same tone, dragging Daras with her as she stepped into the culling beam. The scientist snarled at her, but it was too late; she was already aboard the dart and heading home.

* * *

><p><em>Kish'Kirin<em> was waiting for her in the control room. Kisri paused in the doorway, located him, and made her way over, nimbly sidestepping the other Wraith.

"Well done, Kisri," _Kish'Kirin_ said approvingly. "We have all we came for."

"Good," Kisri agreed. They stood together in silence for a moment, looking at a screen depicting the cavern below. Kisri could feel the forced emotion draining from her, returning her to her usual numb state, and was glad. Faking enough emotion to blend in with the rest of humanity was _hard_. "The Lanteans?" Kisri said finally. "What's to happen to them?"

"Do you care?" _Kish'Kirin _sounded mildly surprised.

Kisri shrugged. "Do you?" She was useful enough to get away with saying things like that, and secretly she thought that _Kish'Kirin_ was sometimes amused when she did. Otherwise she'd have been killed long ago.

She also thought that he might like the man Sheppard. This she would never dare say aloud, but Sheppard and _Kish'Kirin_ were a lot more alike than they realised.

"They are more useful to me alive," _Kish'Kirin_ said finally. "Do they realise you betrayed them?"

Kisri shrugged again. "I'm not the one who can read thoughts." His words irked her, for no reason she could think of: she_ had _betrayed the Lanteans. Pretending otherwise wouldn't change anything.

Why was that making her angry?

"We shall see," _Kish'Kirin_ said. "It may be that you will have to disappear for a while."

"Daras won't be there when they wake up," Kisri said impatiently. "He can kidnap me and the queen of his hive can trade me back to you." The idea of not seeing the Lanteans again was making her angrier still.

_Kish'Kirin_ turned to look at her curiously. "You are sorrowful," he observed.

The words, "What would you know about feelings?" hovered on her tongue, a death sentence no matter how she phrased them. "I'm tired," she announced instead. "I need to sleep. _Karo._"

_Kish'Kirin_ dismissed her with a nod. Despite her own words, as Kisri lay in her dim quarters that night, the fact that a monster understood emotion better than she did made it impossible for her to sleep.

* * *

><p>Sheppard groaned and sat up. "What just happened?" he said out loud.<p>

"This is the second time I've passed out today," Ronon grumbled.

Rodney was cradling his head. "Oh my god. This is like my worst migraine ever. Stunners hurt less than this."

"Where is Kisri?" Teyla interrupted.

"That psycho with a knife is gone too," Sheppard observed.

Ronon was on his feet with a gun in hand by this point, regardless of his throbbing head. "There's blood here," he called.

"That's where Kisri was lying," Rodney said in a scared tone.

"Alright, let's not get too worried," Sheppard cautioned. "Now, something happened when I stepped _here_…" he stepped into the circle of symbols. They lit up, the roof opened, the walls slid upwards.

"This is the way out of the maze," Teyla observed.

"That's the symbol in Ancient for 'storage'," McKay observed. "What the hell is going on here?'

Sheppard looked around the room, at the empty compartments, and almost screamed in frustration. "Whatever it is," he said darkly, "I doubt it has to do with Wraith-killing rocks."

"You mean… Todd lied to us."

"Yes."

"We really shouldn't be so surprised," Rodney said. "Todd does that a lot."

"So that's probably not Kisri's blood." Ronon sounded almost cheerful.

"I doubt it. At least we can get out of here." Sheppard glanced down at his injured arm and reconsidered. "On second thoughts… Ronon, you think you can climb out?"

"Sure."

Sheppard pulled a rope from his tactical vest and tossed it to him. "Get going. I want a proper breakfast."

* * *

><p>A day later, Sheppard was in the mess hall, enjoying a breakfast with Teyla, Torren and Ronon when Rodney arrived.<p>

"Hey, so I talked to Jennifer about that blood sample we gave her," he began, interrupting Teyla telling off Ronon for giving Torren syrup. "She said that it was full of Wraith enzyme–"

"Huge surprise there," Sheppard commented.

"And that it was female."

"You mean that that was Kisri's blood?" Teyla clarified, tightening her grip on a wriggling, squirming Torren.

"Yeah. Whatever happened while we were passed out with her and Daras, I don't think Kisri came out of it well." Ronon helped himself to some of John's bacon and eyed Ronon's speculatively. "Guys, maybe Kisri didn't play us."

"Maybe," Sheppard agreed doubtfully. "I mean, it's possible, I guess..."

"Touch my bacon and you're a dead man," Ronon said to McKay in a tone that was serious.

"Ok, relax! Hey, what happened to him?" Rodney pointed at Torren, who looked like he was about to explode.

"Do not ask," Teyla said, giving Ronon a death glare. "He will be a handful all day now."

"I'll take care of him," Ronon said airily.

"Fine. Here." Teyla dumped an armful of sticky, squealing, flailing toddler into Ronon's lap. Ronon grabbed Torren before he could fall off and shot Sheppard a horrified look.

"I'm not telling her to take him back. Why'd you volunteer?" Sheppard asked reasonably.

"I didn't think she would say yes." Ronon growled as Torren grabbed a dreadlock and yanked it with a shriek of glee.

"It was a lovely offer," Teyla said with a smirk, finally able to eat her breakfast.

"Can I teach him to shoot?" Ronon asked.

"No!"

"Wrestle?"

"No."

Ronon looked down at Torren. "What am I meant to do with him?"

"I do not know," Teyla said, rising. "He is your problem for the day."

"Sheppard–"

"I have to go talk to Woolsey," Sheppard said quickly.

"I have to go calculate something," Rodney added, nearly fleeing the table.

"Traitors," Ronon said to Torren.

The toddler laughed.

"Traitors," Ronon repeated softly with a sigh, offering Torren another spoonful of syrup. It hadn't done _him_ any harm when he was little. "Traitor."

"S'up!" Torren cried, reaching out his hands pleadingly. Ronon considered for a moment, then put the syrup bottle aside.

"Sorry," he said to Torren. "Some things... aren't... good for you. No matter how much you want them."

He sighed again, picked Torren up, and left the room, leaving the shattered remains of breakfast behind him.

**It's finished. I'm thinking sequel, if only so Kisri and Ronon can hook up. Let me know what you guys think!**


End file.
